For the Nine
by AmericanWordsmith
Summary: The Royal family of Vanaheim isn't blind to anything of importance in the Nine Realms. So when Loki usurps Odin's throne, Princess Zinia Vanir seizes the event as an opportunity to take control of Yggdrasil herself. But such a feat requires her to trick the Trickster God himself, a game with consequences greater than she could ever imagine. REWRITE!
1. Chapter 1

It's rarely a good sign when one is woken in the early hours of the morning by the sound of one's sister shrieking loud enough to wake the whole of Vanaheim, Valhalla, and more. The sound pierced through the air, reverberating off the palace walls, causing everyone to clutch their ears while guards rushed to the scene. They'd all had the vision, the royal women of Vanaheim that is, who were born with the powers of seers. Each of them experienced visions a little differently — Nanshe always screamed — and the visions rarely brought _good _news.

So naturally, the Royal Family of Vanaheim was most displeased by what they saw. All except Zinia Vanir, First Princess of the Vanirs, that is. For the first time in her life — and on the cusp of her impending coronation, no less — Zinia would be leaving Vanaheim, all thanks to the vision. Unfortunately, the vision also confirmed that the trip would not be made under the best of circumstances, hence her extensive family's current dissatisfaction

For the past several millennia, the Vanir family had ruled over the Nine Realms of Yggdrasil as nothing more than a figurehead. Zinia's grandmother, Inanna, had given up the family's power, all but symbolically, to Asgard. At the time, Asgard was a force to be reckoned with — still was, Zinia could make no mistake — and the whole of the Nine Realms owed Bor, King of Asgard, a huge debt of gratitude for defeating the Dark Elves and hiding the Aether. To seal the alliance and gift of power, Inanna even arranged the marriage of her own daughter to Bor's son — Frigga and Odin.

Bor's own son, Odin, had perpetuated a legacy of strong leadership and the Vanir were content to let the militarily superior Asgard continue reigning in their stead. Still, after eons under the rule of Vanaheim, most in the Nine Realms still expected the Vanir family to maintain some oversight. Asgard military action was always approved of by the Vanir first, though it was clear the approval was more a formality.

But then, Odin's sons began to cause trouble. The Vanir family had quite nearly interceded after Odin's adopted son, Loki, had brought devastating destruction to Midgard. Odin saw he was properly confined, though, and their worries never came to fruition. Odin's birth son, half-Vanir himself, Thor, had released Loki in order to defeat the Dark Elves upon their return and Loki valiantly died in the effort… or so everyone thought.

So concerned with his own ascension to the throne of Asgard was Loki, that he failed to recognize any impending trouble with the Vanir. Forgetting the Vanir gift of sight wasn't a trait any potential ruler should "overlook," so to speak. Within minutes, they had known that Odin had been usurped by Loki. They watched, helplessly, as Thor returned to Midgard for the woman he loved and Loki prepared to rule under the guise of his father.

Well, not quite hopelessly.

"It is time for the Vanir to return to power," Zinia had told her parents, Queen Iluti and King Deus, at a seance called to monitor the goings-on of Asgard, "_True_ power, not symbolic."

"The Asgardian army has been stronger than ours for many centuries," her mother warned lightly.

"The Asgardian army is considerably weakened after the destruction unleashed by the Dark Elves. And we have allies across the Nine Realms," she argued, "The Jotuns have cast off their lost son ever since he murdered his birth father, Laufey. The Midgardians would not stand for Loki's rule after his stunts in their realm. Even his own brother, Thor, would turn against him given this latest deceit that only we are aware of…"

Zinia had always felt she had a knack for _real_ ruling. She'd met Odin many times when he came to Vanaheim to seek the mandatory approval for his military escapades. She was always the most outspoken debater when demanding more insight into his plans. Now, only days before her 1050th birthday, the age when she could finally ascend to her mother's throne, she desired to truly fulfil her role as a queen.

"We certainly cannot sit idly by while a known traitor holds the Asgard throne," her mother agreed, "But I do not wish to start your reign with a war between the two greatest powers of Yggdrasil."

"I pray it will not come to that," Zinia agreed grimly, "But you have never known me to act rashly in delicate situations."

It was true. Zinia was well-known for her cool head and even temper prevailing against testosterone fueled arguments with Odin. He may have technically had power over her family in his life, but Zinia's argumentative powers of persuasion had a way of winning everyone over.

"I will go in the name of peaceful progress," she said, "A trip through Yggdrasil before my impending coronation."

She left on the day of her birthday. Zinia was the eldest of Iluti's seven daughters. They were very close and they all crowded around her, with concern and heavy hearts, as she prepared to leave. They'd never left each other before.

With the bifrost recently repaired by aid of the tesseract, Zinia would be the first of the Vanir women to use the rainbow bridge since her aunt Frigga's journey to the realm. Typically, Zinia would have travelled using the Spring of Mimir, a great icy river that flowed through the roots of the Yggdrasil galaxy, linked specifically between Vanaheim and the Jotunheim but connecting everywhere due to its many tributaries through space and time. But Zinia used Mimir to travel all the time. Who knew if she'd ever have the opportunity to use the Bifrost again?

Summoning Heimdall, who knew better than to ignore a daughter of Mimir, Zinia was caught up in a rush of light and color. It was magnificent, much more pleasant than the chilly waters of Mimir which cut like ice even when draped in magic cloaks. Her royal guard had just arrived ahead of her and four personal assistants and two squires followed. Even later, more people would follow. Deliveries of cases of wine and Sikaru beer, plus dates, expensive fruits, nuts, and Vanaheim chocolate. Her father might insist on adding a few cases of famous Vanaheim silk or Mimir dyed wool, too. Musicians and dancers, performers and animal trainers, even magicians. She could only hope Loki would have the good sense to accept their benevolence with grace.

"Princess Zinia of Vanaheim!" She look over to see the famed Heimdall, the gatekeeper of the Bifrost welcoming her. "I am honored to be the first to welcome you to Asgard. Odin will be most pleased to have a daughter of Mimir here again."

"Good Heimdall, thank you for your warm welcome," she said, immediately catching the reference to Frigga. It was clear the people of Asgard's hearts were still sore. "I never had a chance to meet my Aunt Frigga. My grandmother Inanna arranged her marriage before I was even born, but I have heard many wonderful tales. My own mother misses her terribly."

She spoke genuinely. Her own heart felt full once again upon remembering her mother's grief at the loss of her sister.

"We all hope we can find lasting peace in the aftermath of such tragedy," Heimdall said and held a hand out to gesture towards Asgard, "Odin awaits."

Zinia wasn't willing to alert the whole of Asgard to Loki's ruse before she'd even met him herself. So, with a simple smile and polite nod of respect, she and her entourage made their way to the great city. She took a moment to view Asgard fully, for the first time. It really did shine, as if made of diamonds and glass and gold. But beyond the palace, the city was flat and free of nature—at least compared to her own home city. Parts of it seemed to melt into the ocean and sunlight surrounding the city itself.

Zinia stepped into the chariot which pulled her towards the palace. For her first political meeting, Zinia was wearing a deep crimson velvet gown—crimson was the color associated with Vanaheim. The gown was off the shoulders with a plunging neckline and a long cape that fell from the back. Surrounding her bosom and bodice was a fitted metal breast plate designed and bedecked like a corset more than a piece of armor. And hugging her bare shoulders was the fluffy stole of an ancient sabertooth, passed through her family from queen to queen. Atop her head was a crown forged from rocks on Jotunheim, a fact she hoped wouldn't be lost on Loki. The resulting turrets and spires of her crown looked almost like ice. Rising from two hidden attachments in her piled high blonde hair were two enormous white-gold gilded antlers. Antlers were always her father's sigil and she'd taken them on as homage to him. Everything else about her from her strong shoulders and long dark blonde hair to slightly crooked nose and golden eyes, of course, came from her mother after all.

Just as her chariot began to speed up, Zinia called out suddenly: "Stop!"

They waited for a moment and then another squire arrived on the Bifrost leading an enormous black lion with a huge thick, inky mane. The lion let out a powerful deafening roar, worried from the trip across the bifrost. Zinia's squire struggled to maintain a hold on the beast before finally slipping and falling on his own face as the lion escaped.

"Shadowcat!" Zinia cooed and held her arms out. The enormous ebony feline crawled into her chariot and they took off once again.

* * *

She began walking with Shadowcat at her side before the chariot driver was expecting to let her off. Her velvet cape trailed behind her and Shadowcat was careful not to step on it. He didn't know why this day was so important, but he could tell it was to his mistress. They had traveled a long, terrifying way to get here, but the cat had seen worse.

Zinia tried hard not to bite on her lip which was lacquered up with sheen above a deep black base. She was already catching Loki off-guard, in more ways than one considering he didn't even know she was on Asgard, but she hoped her carefully tailored appearance might also floor him. In an attempt to chose diplomacy over civil war, it couldn't hurt to look good. It also couldn't hurt to look regal as Vanaheim reinstated its power in full over Yggdrasil. She needed to look the part of a Queen of Nine Realms if she truly were to become one.

Suddenly, they were there in front of the throne room. Shadowcat sat down with a "hmpf" behind her as an Asgardian assistant rushed to open the heavy doors.

"Presenting, her highness Princess Zinia of Vanaheim, the first daughter of the Spring of Mirim, and future Queen of the Nine Realms!" someone announced her.

She stepped through the doors confidently. Shadowcat rose instantly beside her and walked steadily. If she hadn't known better, she really would have thought she was seeing Odin again. The elderly man was perched in his throne, leaning forward to regard her carefully. Loki would have to play this well. She had met Odin many times.

"Uncle Odin!" she said warmly, "It is so wonderful to see you!"

Zinia had absolutely never referred to Odin as "uncle" once in her life. In turn, he'd always seemed to view her as more a political partner than the biological niece of his wife. There wasn't much warmth, if any, exchanged between them.

Loki-Odin smiled broadly. It was an expression she was almost positive she'd never seen Odin wear in his lifetime. He looked her up and down, not quite in the way an uncle _should_ look at his niece either.

"Zinia," he began (Odin had never referred to her as anything less than Princess), "I've been informed that today is your birthday. Allow me to wish you glad tidings!"

Zinia quirked an eyebrow trying to hold back her laughter. Someone, probably a spy, had run ahead of her arrival to prepare him. What he'd been told, and how the information was relayed, she could not fathom as she suspected the whole of Asgard may very well have believed Odin was still alive and ruling. Either way, did Loki not know his own father? From her experiences with Odin she gathered he likely wasn't exactly demonstrative and open with his sons, either. Her mother had relayed in passing, thanks to letters from Frigga, that his cold demeanor had frequently been a point of contention within the marriage. Perhaps Loki thought Odin a better uncle than father and husband. More likely, he was simply playing off of her own demeanor.

"You seem in quite a good mood," she lied smoothly, only cutting him a break to perpetuate the game a bit longer, "I had worried my surprise arrival might cause some… _hostility?_"

Loki-Odin took a moment to consider this and she could sense a growing anxiety as he debated his next move, "Asgard would never turn away friends from Vanaheim," he said slowly and then, with genuine emotion, "Especially not after the passing of my late wife."

Zinia nodded solemnly. "My family sends their regrets for missing the funeral, it was all arranged so quickly," she said. "We did host our own vigil on Vanaheim. I hope that you will tell me about the Asgardian funeral. I know my mother very much wishes to know the details of her sister's final send-off."

He looked very uncomfortable at this suggestion. She was fully aware he had been incarcerated at the time of the funeral. Suddenly and sharply, guilt twisted in her stomach. That had been an awful memory for her to trap him in. Adopted or not, he was doubtlessly angst-ridden over missing his own mother's funeral.

Nevertheless he gave her a curt nod. "Indeed, if we find time to speak privately-"

"-_Actually_, uncle," she said, looking to the Asgardian guards flanking either side of her, "I had very much hoped that we could speak privately _now_. There is something of great importance that I simply must discuss with you before I retire for the afternoon."

He shifted in his throne, clearly uncomfortable, "After the journey? Are you sure you wouldn't prefer to be escorted to your chambers to rest briefly?"

"Thank you for your concern, Uncle Odin," a flat out smirk was gracing her features now and she couldn't bite back her sarcasm, "You are always _so_ thoughtful. But I must insist…"

With a weary sigh Odin lifted his hand and gestured for the armed guards to leave. They did an about face and exited the hall. It was at this point Zinia began to ascend the stairs to his throne. Shadowcat let out a soft growl behind her and she breathed out a quiet _"Stay." _

Loki-Odin looked like he had absolutely no clue what to do so he stood, watching her cautiously. "I must admit you've piqued my interest, niece," he said.

"Have I?" she asked, "Well _you've _piqued mine. Such a warm welcome I almost thought you might embrace me." At this she plopped herself right down into his vacated throne, more to see what he'd do than anything else.

Zinia could see the worry etched into the creases of his elderly face. It was priceless. She bit back another laugh. "Now see here, Zinia, you've always been a great favorite of mine but that does not-"

"Have I? A great favorite?" she asked, leaning forward in faux-surprise, "Why I never knew that, dear Odin! Tell me more!"

His mouth was slightly agape and his expression more panicky than ever. He began to emit a stutter, searching for what to say next and Zinia couldn't help but laugh aloud.

"Or should I call you... Odin_son_?" she asked with a sneer.

Immediately he shifted forms and the Odin-facade fell away, replaced by a startlingly taller, leaner man with long slicked-back raven-black hair, wearing an emerald cloak beneath golden armor. He was glaring down at her quite menacingly, his eyes ablaze with insane anger and his skin almost sickly pale. She almost felt afraid and, for a brief moment, wondered if she might have better sense to _actually_ be afraid. Either way, she stared back up at him defiantly, her chin held high, her smirk unwavering.

"Well, you most certainly _shouldn't_ call me _that_," he spat at her, literal spittle flying from his mouth.

"Oh calm down," she ordered while narrowing her eyes, "The Trickster God can't take a joke? Or are you just pouting because you've been beat at your own game?"

"How did you find out?" he asked, "Everyone thinks I am dead."

"Poor darling," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Your own mother was Vanir. We have the power of sight, remember? Every female in my family saw what you did."

"What do you want?" he demanded.

"Right now? Well I'd still like you to calm down, and then I'd like a proper introduction," she said before crossing her legs and holding out her hand, "I'm Zinia Vanir, Princess of Vanaheim and impending Queen of Yggdrasil."

He took her hand, looking unsure of what to do with it before bringing it to his lips for a chaste moment and then dropping her hand unceremoniously, "Loki of Asgard. It is a… pleasure, to finally meet you."

His neglectance of a formal title was not unnoted. He was very politic; Zinia could appreciate that. She could also appreciate that right now might be the only time she would ever have the advantage over the God of Mischief. She had caught him off-guard _once_ and she had no doubt that the first moment he had to himself to begin plotting he would use to his full advantage. If there was a time to play with him, she had to do it now.

"Is there somewhere else we can go to speak?" she asked, "No matter which one of us is sitting in this throne, it's quite unequalizing."

She searched his face for any sign of emotion to her peace offering but his features were stoic when he replied, "Of course. That would be for the best."

He extended his hand again to help her up and walk her down the throne steps. "Now, I hope this won't be too troublesome a request," she began, keeping the game going for as long as possible, "But is there _any _way you can make your Odin disguise visible to everyone but myself? No offense to your late… foster... parent, but he wasn't exactly a _looker_," she concluded, feeling it may even be insensitive to chance the words "adoptive father."

Next to her, Loki finally released the ghost of a real smile, "That can be arranged, yes."

The halls of the palace were as ornate as the exterior and throne room. Gold pillars and billowing silk drapes lined the endless spiraling long hallways. Shadowcat fell a few paces behind them, along with her ladies even more behind that, with her squires carrying her things following last. Loki was barely touching her, as if he was afraid, but Zinia was used to that. The princess and future queen of the Nine Realms was an introduction not many could handle. However, she was pretty sure this was not the reasoning Loki was being so cautious with her. Like most of Asgard, he still saw her and her family as nothing more than a figurehead. It was clear his caution was due to the fact he had no _clue_ why she was there.

They came upon a cluster of Asgardian guards in the hall, all of whom immediately stopped their discussion to stand to attention upon seeing "Odin."

"Please escort my niece's servants to our guest quarters. I will have one of my private guardsmen escort her to her chambers after we have had a moment to speak alone," Loki told the guards. Apparently whatever charm he had cast that still allowed her to see him as Loki really did keep him disguised from the rest of the world.

The guards saluted and lead her ladies and squires away as Loki pulled her into a room behind a set of great oak double doors that two more guardsmen opened for them. The room they entered was empty of anyone else and Zinia quickly gleaned that these were his private quarters. Currently she stood in the first antechamber of the rooms, peaking out behind billowing curtains on the opposite wall lay what appeared to be a bedroom and small library, and a bathroom and balcony behind that. But Loki remained in the antechamber where a great oval table and many chairs lay waiting. He pulled one of the chairs out and gestured for her to sit. She half expected him to pull the chair out from under her, as his rage was barely disguised, but he simply took a seat next to her.

His face was stern and trying too hard to be expressionless. His body posture suggested he was ill at ease. So Zinia performed the opposite function; she slumped into the back of the chair in a most unladylike, but very relaxed, fashion.

"You don't look pleased, Loki," she said with a smile.

"You've yet to tell me what you want."

"What I want I already have," she replied simply with a shrug, "I am Queen of Yggdrasil, or will be after my coronation in a few weeks. As such, I cannot say that I am pleased with the deception you're perpetuating on Asgard. The throne is not yours."

Loki's shoulders tensed and his fists clenched at his side. "The throne is not mine? May I remind you that Vanaheim's rule has been symbolic since our _grandparents _were alive?"

"Perhaps it has been functioning that way," she said, "Only because we have allowed it to. And the alliance that held the agreement between Asgard and Vanaheim in place, the marriage between your foster parents, is no longer in place now that they've both passed."

"So you simply intend to start overruling all Asgardian decisions?" he asked with a sneer, "Your military is no match for ours, it hasn't been for centuries!"

"First of all, why would our decisions _need_ to overrule yours? Our realms have always naturally leaned towards similar opinions," she said, "And though it is true that Vanaheim's military is no match for yours… We have the other realms on our side. You're not exactly the most popular man in the cosmos right now, dead or alive."

Loki abruptly rose from his chair and began pacing about the room. He whirled back to face her. "And if Thor returns?"

Zinia shrugged. "Either way, you no longer hold the throne of Asgard. And given how anxious your brother was to return to Midgard when you last tricked him, I don't think he's going to pose much of a threat to my rightful authority."

Loki stopped pacing, brows furrowed. He looked like a desperate animal. A desperate animal about to start bargaining… "Why come speak to me first?" he asked, "Would you rather have me on the throne of Asgard and acquiescing to your little game over meeting with Thor and potentially have him challenge you?" It was veiled in a threatening, know-it-all tone, but the hope in his voice was all too clear.

Zinia snorted and stood up herself. "Don't think yourself so lucky," she said, "I will be contacting Thor and requesting his presence eminently. Though I may rule Yggdrasil as a whole, it is not up to me to decide who reigns superior over Asgard. That is Thor's right. Perhaps he will still give the throne to you."

Loki scowled at her in a manner that suggested he found this possibility unlikely. She pressed ahead anyway realizing that, at this point, it was unlikely anything she said _wouldn't_ make the fallen prince uncomfortable.

"I came to you first for several reasons, first being that I do not know you," Zinia explained. "I have seen your exploits through many unfortunate, unstoppable visions. I have heard many tales. But I know from my own personal experience that our past does not define us. I had to meet you for myself."

She dared to walk over to where he was pacing, placing a hand on his forearm to stall him. He stopped and looked at her, brow still furrowed, the unmistakable signs of anger and annoyance still permeating his being. She hoped very much that she could end this on _something _of a good note. Zinia did not need the God of Mischief and Lies plotting against her before she was even coronated. Perhaps her earlier teasing had gone too far; some part of her had hoped he might _appreciate _it as a gesture calling to mind his own nature.

"But I also came to you first because I do not plan to be a rash or uncaring ruler. The last thing I would want would be to start a civil war by bringing your brother here unannounced. I did not wish to surprise you," she explained. He raised his eyebrows at that and cocked his head, acknowledging the hypocrisy of the statement. She genuinely blushed. "Well, I didn't want to surprise you _too_ terribly. I… couldn't resist," she admitted.

Loki sighed. "Well, as I apparently have no say in the matter, I'm not sure what else you're waiting to hear from me," he said.

"Is Odin… is he dead?" she asked slowly, already searching his face for a sign of deceit. "The vision was unclear at the end. We weren't entirely sure what you'd done with him."

Loki didn't answer right away. He was staring her down, _hard. _Clearly, he thought she had no right to come in here making demands for such information. Zinia disagreed entirely, both because of her birthright and because she currently still had the upperhand. Instead of reminding him of his precarious position, she tried a softer tactic.

"Please, do not lie," she requested quietly.

"No, he is not dead," he answered finally, not making eye contact, "He is in Odinsleep… but it is a more permanent situation than typical Odinsleep."

Zinia did not ask him why he didn't kill Odin. She suspected it may have had something to do with a shred of love for his adoptive father. In fact, Loki had been worried about the release of magical energy from killing such a formidable figure and had chosen a more cowardly, but safer, option.

"Can we wake him up?" she asked, trying to sound ambivalent but not fully able to mask her tone. She would be none to thrilled about the idea of bringing Odin back to power.

"Well I'm sure there is _something_ that can break the sleep… I just have no idea what it would be," he said flashing his first smile since they met.

She looked down, somewhat abashed by how glad she was to have his confirmation. "I hope to have your brother here by this evening. I think it may go better than you expect. I think he will be happy to see you alive," she said.

Loki rolled his eyes, like a petulant child. "Last time he discovered I was alive, he threw me from a plane."

"Last time, you were attempting to lead an invasion on Midgard," she said with a laugh, which seemed to surprise him. "I will see you later this evening."

Loki nodded. Zinia wasn't sure what possessed her to do it, but she leaned upwards to kiss his cheek. He visibly startled, which made her smile. "Till then," he said finally.

Waving a hand the doors opened for her and a guardsman stepped forward to lead her away.

* * *

**Well! That's a pretty different direction from my initial writing of this story. Please, please let me know what you think of this updated version. And if you really want the old one back, let me know; I've saved it but I'm not going to publish it elsewhere unless my arm is twisted. Reviews are my fuel for updating anything on this site, so I hope you'll let me know what you think of the new direction! **

**I promise I'm updating "The Speed I Lack" soon enough, I just want to get several chapters of this up first, but the writing is going pretty quickly. **


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys, so when I published Chapter 1… it was sent out to subscribers with a broken URL, oddly enough. This update should have sent out normally. Anyway, if you've opened this link first please make sure to go back and read Chapter 1. Otherwise you're gonna be super confused. **

* * *

After Zinia left the room, Loki sent shock-waves of angry energy pulsing through his chamber that sent furniture flying and overturned the great oval table where they'd just been holding a discussion. A string of expletives left his hissing mouth and he momentarily felt vilified though, also, quite crass. He did not typically debase himself with such language.

_That little tart_, he thought bitterly. Part of symbolic monarchy for millennia and then what? On her majority birthday she suddenly decides she can simply switch everyone back to the systems of old by snapping her fingers? Loki knew, at least, he was right to be angry about that fact. Any ruler of Asgard would be. The _only_ reason she was getting away with it was because she had him caught in a technicality. _Technically_, he had usurped the throne of Asgard. Unsurprisingly, Loki was not able to glean the similarity of their situations.

He had knots in his stomach about Thor. He hadn't _killed _Odin… just put him into Odinsleep. But what if Thor wanted to then _wake _Odin? Loki suspected he would. At least, then, they'd all be able to put the Vanir back in their place. Unless Zinia converted him to her cause. Thor was very persuadable. But Loki was good at persuasion too. He might be able to convince the brute to band with him to take her down. Then he could buy some time to think about what to do when he inevitably wanted to wake up Odin after Zinia was gone.

But this was all assuming that Thor didn't simply _kill_, or worse, imprison Loki for putting the All-Father into Odinsleep with no knowledge of how to wake him. Thor would likely search the whole of Yggdrasil, dragging Loki with him, looking for a cure. Loki cursed again at the thought. Maybe that was the girl's plan. Get them _both_ away from Asgard so she could rule the Nine Realms in their absence, maybe even taking over the Asgardian military so Odin or anyone else would be powerless upon their return.

Briefly, the thought of simply killing the girl now flashed through his mind. He could disguise himself as one of her maids and stab her through the heart. In the same fantasy, the image of her bosom suddenly sprang to mind. Her tan flesh, typical for a young woman raised in the bright sunlight on Vanaheim, the tick of her beating heart, displayed so perfectly by the velvet gown she was wearing.

Loki shook his head to rid himself of that particular image to refocus. Poison. He could easily sneak poison into a tray sent to her room before dinner. Once again, unbidden, an image popped into his mind's eye. Her taking a long draught of wine, a stray drop spilling out onto the ivory flesh of her neck before she seized up and collapsed onto the floor… her long golden locks splayed out around her.

Or he could take a more forthright route and request another private audience. Once her maids had left her chamber he'd simply summon his magic to lift her body into the air and begin strangling her. He wouldn't be physically touching her, so there would be no proof. But he'd still get the personal satisfaction of killing her and watching her, in her final moments as her body was helpless under his command. His magic dominating complete control over her…

He shook his head a final time. While each of these fantasies _at least_ involved her death, they were taking a decidedly distracted turn. Now was not the time to be distracted. Loki focused on preparing an explanation for Thor.

* * *

Zinia was pleased with her sumptuous quarters but was smart enough to refuse the wine offered to her. Instead, she set aside several bottles that her squires had brought with them as gifts. She poured herself a big glass, all but chugging it before refilling it and handing it to an attendant to keep full.

She felt surprisingly weak. Simply being around another creature of magic, particularly if you were unfamiliar with their personal kind of magic, could do that to you. While her mother and sisters all had magic, and she was surrounded by them daily, it was the same as her own magic. It was comforting, familiar… strengthening, even, sometimes.

Even still, there _was_ something familiar about Loki's magic too. Something terribly dark, like an awful side of herself she'd never fully realized. Magic of Yggdrasil was broken into two extremes: the light magic of Alfheim, realm of the light elves, and the dark magic of Svartalfheim, realm of the dark elves… long thought extinct until Malekith came back. Who knew what the rest of them were up to these days now that he'd been defeated once and for all?

The Jotunheim, where everyone now knew Loki to be from, was dark magic through and through. That's when it occurred to Zinia why his magic seemed familiar. Vanaheim was connected to the Jotunheim via Mimir's icy waters… the very same waters where she and her sisters had been born. Though Vanaheim, like Asgard, was a realm of light magic, she and her sisters all had a dark side to some extent… it just rarely came out. Perhaps, she wondered, if she and Loki ever managed to get on better terms he would teach her how to master and control her dark magic. Zinia laughed allowed at the thought, confusing her maids around her; that seemed highly unlikely.

A message had been delivered to Heimdall asking him to summon Thor. Regardless of whatever he was doing on Midgard (and had their been any trouble she was sure her power of sight would have alerted her), she felt sure he would answer a direct call from Vanaheim just as Odin would have. Well into her third glass of wine, she could see the shining bridge open from outside her window. He had arrived. She needed to get ready.

* * *

Unfortunately for Zinia, Loki did not need to get ready. The moment the palace lit up from the opening of the Bifrost, Loki lay in wait for his brother. Still under the guise of Odin lest he disturb his own guards, he sat on the throne.

"Bring Thor directly to me," he ordered the guards, "Should the Princess Zinia attempt to gain access to the throne room, please inform me before you allow her in."

The guards looked extremely uncomfortable with that order. While all of Asgard saw her as no more than a figurehead, she was an important one. Turning down a direct order from her, when she was technically Loki, er-_Odin's _superior, was not for the faint of heart.

Her could hear Thor's clomping footsteps for several hundred feet before he actually reached the throne room. The doors swung open.

"Father, I've received a message from Princess Zinia of Vanaheim-" Thor began.

"Leave us!" Loki ordered the guards and they promptly disappeared through the doors, sealing the room behind us.

"Father? What is going on?" Thor asked.

Loki could think of no suitably delicate way to spring the news, so he silently dropped magical facade. Thor's eyes widened in abject shock.

"Brother…" he began before, all at once, switching gears and narrowing his eyes, "Loki you are alive, where is father?"

"In Odinsleep," Loki replied in a nonplussed but rather weary tone, "I really don't feel like going through the process of explaining it all to you. Do you think you can manage it alone?"

Thor scowled angrily but Loki watched as his forehead creased in concentration, working everything out.

"You didn't… die on Svartalfheim. It was a ruse. You came back and usurped father," he said.

"I'm impressed Thor!" Loki said with as belittling a tone as he could muster. Unfortunately, it wasn't quite up to his usual cruel standards of patronizing given the absurd amount of stress under which the Vanir woman was putting him.

"But, you did not kill him?" Thor asked.

Drat. Loki had sincerely hoped Thor would not notice that. "I may be a risk taker, but I'm not _that_ foolhardy," he smoothly amended.

"Why tell me? You were ruling Asgard, free from prying eyes," Thor pressed.

Loki shifted in his seat uncomfortably. "Not exactly," he said, his upper lip curling in anger, "A princess of Vanaheim summoned you here, did she not?"

Realization sunk in and reflected on Thor's face, "Of course, the Vanir power of sight…" he said and then laughed, "They are not pleased?"

He all but growled back at Thor. "They are ambivalent about who rules Asgard," Loki said, "It's _worse _than that. They want to take back control of Yggdrasil."

Thor raised his brows and cocked his head at Loki. "Forgive me, brother, but I do not see the problem. Though I always believed you had more of an affinity for the crown than I… truly, neither one of us is meant to rule all Nine Realms. I would suppose maybe you were suggesting we wake up father but I think we both know his last few years at the helm of Yggdrasil proved ineffective and needlessly violent."

"He was going senile," Loki amended, relishing the disapproving look Thor threw his way. "And either way, his sleep appears to be just short of permanent. I have no idea how to wake him."

"I'm glad to hear you're on my side, Thor," an even-toned, female voice purred from the back of the room. Loki looked at her in shock, prepared to begin berating his guards, but the doors to the throne room weren't even open. Seeing his confusion, she explained. "Your henchman explained that _Odin_ needed a moment with his son… so I simply summoned myself into the room. You're not the only one who knows that trick."

Thor was gaping at Zinia. She had changed into an outfit with purpose, something to win the God of Thunder over lest he prove not quite amenable. The bodice of her outfit was pure silver fitted armor, including engraved links around her wrists. Billowing out from the armor was a pale pink skirt, lithe and freeing, perfect for moving quickly if necessary. She was still wearing her crown of Jotunheim ice, though she'd taken off the bulky antlers, and her golden hair was spilling down onto her bare back and shoulders.

She walked right up to Thor, preparing to hold out her hand but, instantly he was on his knees. "Princess," he said, keeping his head down, "It is an honor to meet you. Forgive any slights my brother inadvertently troubled you with, please. He is not as versed in Vanaheim's authority as I."

Loki scoffed out loud, deliberately laughing louder and longer than he needed to. Zinia rolled her eyes as she beckoned for Thor to stand.

"You're mistaken, Thor. I know that Vanaheim's monarchy is simply symbolic. They haven't ruled the Nine Realms for thousands of years. They can't suddenly reclaim their power out of nowhere," he insisted.

"Actually, they can," Thor said.

"Excuse me?" Loki fired back.

"Father made sure I was well versed in the treaty set down upon his marriage to our mother. There's nothing that ever specifically said they weren't in full control of the Nine Realms. They've simply been _letting_ us rule for all these years because we proved ourselves worthy. If anything, there was always an unwritten implication that they _would_ regain control after the union between Odin and Frigga finally dissolved," Thor explained.

That didn't sound right, not to Loki. How on Earth would Thor know more about the law of Yggdrasil than he?

"Forgive me if I don't just take your word for it," he snapped, "I will summon the finest Asgardian law scholars and have them take a look at the treaty."

"Just Asgardian scholars?" Zinia questioned in a bored tone, "Seems a bit unfair."

"If you're as certain in your right to rule as you act, I see no reason that you should object!"

Zinia leveled her best glare at Loki but he looked unfazed. "You are right," she said, "It will take days to pour over the treaty in full. In the meantime… today is my birthday and I am on progress through the Nine Realms before my coronation. I assume you will have something suitable prepared?"

"Of course, your majesty," Thor promised. Loki merely nodded with an eye roll. That woman was full of self-righteousness. He couldn't stand it.

"I thank you so much for the warm welcome, Thor. We do have much to discuss so I hope you won't be leaving too soon?"

"Not… right away, Princess, no. But I will need to return to Midgard," he responded.

"I hope you will be able to enlighten me as to why you've left a realm of the gods for one of mortals over dinner," she said, but not in an unpleasant tone, "In the meantime I think I'll explore your lovely palace a bit. And perhaps you two can discuss your plans for breaking the news of Odin's situation to Asgardian citizens… and why _Loki_ will now be taking over."

Every time Zinia thought Loki couldn't become more angry with her, he made a new expression to suggest otherwise. The creases in his forehead from his very exaggerated frown were almost comical.

"Please, Loki," she said with another laugh, almost delighting in setting him off at this point, "You didn't think we were going to let you walk around pretending to be Odin forever, did you? Cheer up. Someone was bound to notice eventually anyway."

Thor had his brows raised in a look of pure amusement with a hint of admiration as she exited the room. Once she was gone he turned back to his brother.

Thor laughed. "She reminds me of you!"

Loki wanted to punch him in the face.

* * *

All the false bravado was starting to make Zinia sick. In truth, she was naturally confident, but that did not mean she was naturally confrontational. On Vanaheim, Zinia had always been a voice of reason, not a voice of demands. But Loki had proved time and again that he wasn't a man of reason. She'd felt forced to put him in this tight spot.

Besides, no matter how she attempted to reason with him the end result was the same. She and the Vanir family were retaking their control of Yggdrasil. Perhaps once he'd had his "scholars" look over the treaty, he'd see this as less of a threat but she sincerely doubted it. She'd have thought the fact that Thor was so easily won over to the idea of letting Loki keep the crown would have softened him, but it didn't. She was beginning to suspect that the mere fact that she'd bested him was at the root of his anger.

She sighed as she walked the palace halls alone. Almost alone. From the shadows, her great black lion crept out, falling into step beside her. Shadowcat had been a gift from the Dark Elves, one of the last in an endangered species. Her mother had told her Malekith himself sent the beast, just a week after her birth. Considering it was Malekith that had killed Frigga, Zinia thought this a fact best not mentioned to either brother.

Dusk was falling over Asgard, she could see through the arched windows of the palace halls. She wondered where Loki was keeping Odin. Should she request to see him? Likely it would only further annoy Loki, which she was loathe to do even if it could be good fun. In the end, Asgard was and always would be Vanaheim's greatest ally. She didn't need to be the first of her family to ruin the relationship. It was marginally reassuring that Thor appeared to like her but basically useless if he was content to live out his days on Midgard. Then again, everyone knew he was there for a Midgardian woman. Their lives were short; he'd be back once she died. Would he want his throne then?

Thor would certainly be easier to work with than Loki. Loki did not seem the type to forgive a grudge, much less forget it. And what if she married Thor to one of her sisters? That would certainly strengthen his claim to the throne of Asgard.

Zinia was getting ahead of herself. Though the Midgardian life was short, it could easily be another 70 years, perhaps more, before the woman on Midgard died. 70 years was a long time to have to work alongside Loki, something she was determined to do because she would _not_ be lead into a war with Asgard.

No, she decided then and there, though she was on progress through all of Yggdrasil, she would remain in Asgard as long as it took to secure a friendship with Loki. And if not a friendship, at least a strong allyship.

* * *

"Well," Loki said, looking down at Thor, "What _are_ we to do about the whole of Asgard? I doubt they'll be too happy about my rule."

Thor cocked an eyebrow. "Well, I don't know, brother. You did set yourself up pretty well."

For once, it was Loki's turn to look confused, "How do you mean?"

"Upon my arrival, Heimdall took a moment to tell me of my father's great speech about the tragic death of his son Loki and his virtues in saving us all from the Dark Elves," Thor said with a knowing but amused glance. "I'm surprised you were able to stomach calling yourself his son."

Loki outright growled and stood from the throne in frustration, pacing, "I had to think how Odin would actually put it!"

"I doubt Odin would have made such a speech at all," Thor said and Loki rolled his eyes.

"I needed to perpetuate the myth of my death, so as to further distance my characterization of Odin from any suspicion," he said.

"And that is our main obstacle," Thor concluded, "Explaining your miraculous rebirth."

"_That's _the main obstacle? Not how Odin was put into permanent Odinsleep? Not explaining why you aren't now ruling Asgard?"

Thor began to look very pleased with himself. "But I've thought of explanations for all of that. I'm surprised you have not, Silvertongue."

Loki rolled his eyes for what felt like the hundredth time that day. "Pray, continue. Tell me of your brilliant plan."

"You have so little faith in my scheming. I _did _manage to trick Malekith, after all," Thor pressed.

"Yes, yes. It was very impressive. Now tell me of your latest plot so that I might point out what's wrong with it!"

"I will make an announcement to Asgard telling them that father's last duel with the Dark Elves proved more difficult on him in his old age and that he has fallen into an Odinsleep from which he will not wake. I will vow to go in search of a cure to wake him and that you rule in my stead. Given that most of Asgard thinks you a hero because of your own propaganda when masquerading as Odin, it should go over fine," Thor said. "At the same time we can announce that the treaty of Frigga and Odin has now ended and Zinia will rule all of Yggdrasil, including Asgard."

"And instead of searching for a cure, you'll go back to Midgard?"

"Who's to say there is not a cure on Midgard?" Thor asked.

"Very funny, but fine. You know I have no desire to wake the All-Father and if you agree, I'm not going to belabor the point. But this is all done under the promise that you will one day return as ruler?" Loki asked, eyes narrowed.

"You know I have no desire to rule. You heard the honest truth from me when I left for Midgard thinking you were father," Thor said.

Loki still didn't like it. Jane Foster was going to die eventually. And he strongly suspected Thor would want his throne back by then. But he didn't have a better idea to offer up himself and, besides, the course of one mortal's life was plenty of time to think of a plot to keep the throne.

"As for your death," Thor continued, "Might we just say that your body ultimately recovered from its wounds on Vanaheim? That the magic within you was strong enough to heal you it just took much longer than anticipated and you have only now returned?"

That all sounded awfully suspicious, Loki thought, but he was a suspicious person by nature. Besides, it wasn't as if Asgard was a democracy. Whatever Thor told them was happening _was _happening, even if it meant instituting a recently-returned-from-the-dead man as King. There was so much information they'd be relaying… from Zinia to Odinsleep, perhaps the less-than-satisfying explanation would fly over everyone's heads. Valhalla knew, Asgardian citizens were perpetually drunk or dueling all the time anyway.

"I agree to this plan," Loki said, sneering when he saw Thor begin to look proud of himself, "It is not the _best_ plan a man has ever conceived, but it is suitable. However, should we really announce Zinia's reign before the treaty has been looked over?"

"Loki, do not get pedantic about Zinia's rule, that advice is for your own good. You would be wise to work with her as amicably as possible. Now come, we have a celebration to plan for our guest this evening and not much time left."

* * *

The doors swung open. Zinia entered to the cheers of hundreds, though not from the feasting room but the Asgardians surrounding the palace below. Their feasting table was centered in a sunken circular room with circular stairs leading down to the table. Zinia was relieved to see that, other than the multitude of performers situated around the room for their entertainment, Thor and Loki had opted for a private dinner. Their discussions were, apparently not to be delayed.

Given that no one in the room seemed abjectly shocked at the site of Loki, Zinia concluded that only she and Thor were able to see through his enchantment. Around their room, arched windows looked out onto the city which was lit bright with thousands of lanterns. Just then, as fireworks opened the night sky, Zinia could see thousands more citizens in the streets below, looking up at the castle, hoping to catch a glimpse. So her arrival had been noted. Thor's probably had as well.

Two women were already playing quietly on their lutes while several acrobats did tricks in the corner. It wasn't quite as lavish as her normal birthday celebrations, but that didn't bother Zinia. She couldn't help but feel a pang of homesickness though, normally surrounded by six sisters at such affairs. Their table of three seemed quite lonely.

A server came to pull out her chair and promptly offer her both mead and wine. She chose wine and was surprised when the brothers began talking right in front of the man.

"I think I have devised a suitable plan," Thor began before Loki quickly interjected.

"Really? Thor _devising_ something? Much less a plan! Wonders never cease!" he chided.

Thor frowned deeply, clearly hurt. Zinia could see why, all the teasing seemed to come from Loki's end, at least in public. "We've been over this, Loki. I come up with plans all the time!"

"You mean that damned Midgardian agency? What is it? SHADE?" he asked, purposefully playing dumb.

"SHIELD…"

"Yes, well, I knew it was some ridiculous acronym," he said with a winning smile. Zinia rolled her eyes; this sibling drama was becoming a bit thick. With six sisters she'd certainly had her fair share of pointless drama, but they'd always resolved things in the end. Perhaps the Vanir were simply a more mature race.

Or, she wondered absentmindedly, perhaps women were just a more mature sex. But she pushed this thought aside as she gestured to the waiters and performers in confusion.

"Please," Loki mocked her, "I've enchanted the table. They can't hear anything anyone says while they're conversing around it."

"Oh," she said simply, feeling daft for not having realized that most of the Trickster God's powers would naturally revolve around trickery, "Then if you too have finally conclude your little verbal scuffle, _I'd _actually like to hear Thor's plan."

Thor smiled in her direction with gratitude before relaying to her everything they'd discussed in her absence before the feast. Zinia listened patiently. When he finished, she only found one flaw.

"Loki's reappearance is still a bit… jarring," she said.

"Yes, I had that thought myself," Loki replied, seemingly even annoyed by the fact that they might agree on something.

"But I suppose this is a monarchy," Zinia sighed, taking another swig of wine, "I'm told the Vanir did not take it well when my grandmother announced, with little explanation, that Asgard would be temporarily ruling the Nine Realms as reward for their recent war successes. But what were they going to do? Start a revolution?" She snorted and sipped some more wine but Loki looked anxiously to Thor.

"That's not a possibility, is it? All of the Aesir have considerable battle prowess…"

"They do but not compared to our army, and our army's loyalty to whoever is in control of the throne is unfaltering," Thor assured him.

Loki still didn't look convinced, but he didn't argue any further points.

"We should set up the announcement tomorrow, I'll order out a morning herald. I really cannot be away from Midgard longer than that," Thor finished.

"Yes, well hopefully Loki's scholars will be hard at work by then, lest you make the announcement _too early_," she said, raising her eyebrows in mock warning and glancing towards Loki who appeared to be ignoring her sarcasm, "Why is it that you must rush back?"

Thor actually blushed. "Well, I do have responsibilities on Midgard, working as part of a team called The Avengers," he said.

"Yes," Zinia replied, "I had several visions of the destruction in New York, I saw them. I hope to meet them one day." She declined to say anymore on the subject of Loki's havoc, choosing to be polite. She doubted there was little she could do at this point to get on his good side.

"I think that could be arranged," Thor continued, "But honestly, I want to go back sooner because… my great love, Jane Foster lives there."

Zinia smiled. "I have seen her as well. She is a brilliant Midgardian. I wish you all the best," she said.

Thor beamed in gratitude, happy to have met a god who _didn't_ disapprove of his relationship for once. Across the table Loki scoffed. Zinia snapped.

"Must _every _second with you be like spending time with a petulant child?" she demanded.

"I'm sorry, are we all supposed to be on extra special behavior for the Princess's _birthday_?" he countered.

Briefly, she wondered what a site this must look to the surrounding attendants… Odin and his niece silently screaming at each other from across the table while Thor looked between the two helplessly.

"It has nothing to do with that! _I _am not the one acting like a child here, stop projecting your inadequacies onto me!" she demanded.

"_Inadequacies?_" Loki was seething, something about that particular word having hit a nerve, "You _insolent _woman!" he shouted, despite the fact that it was he who was being insolent.

"No one has ever made me lose my patience thusly!" she railed at him, hating being called out based upon her sex, "I would like to cut your face from your head to wear at a masquerade ball. When the guests asked me of my costumage I could inform them I was playing the part of a deranged misogynist!"

A flicker of a completely different emotion passed through Loki's features. She could barely guess at what it was. Amusement? But it was gone and replaced with his typical rage quickly. Luckily for both of them, Thor slammed a fist down on the table, snapping them both out of it.

"Enough! You're both making a scene!" he said, sharply, "Loki, it is you who is out of order in every way. Not only is Zinia your superior, you have insulted a lady on her naming day though that apparently means little to you. Where none of those factors in play, you would _still_ be treating a guest in our home with the utmost disrespect!"

"This woman just walks into my home _un_invited, you forget! And proceeds to tell us all _'Oh, by the way, I'm taking over the Nine Realms!' _and I'm supposed to treat her with respect?" he demanded.

Zinia stood up, her chair sliding out from behind her loudly. "If _that_ is your view of the current situation then you have no self-awareness _whatsoever! _Goodnight, gentlemen!"

And she stormed off to bed. In the halls she had a thought. There was no mistaking it, it had been the worst birthday ever.

* * *

**I'd love to hear your thoughts. Nervous but also excited about the new direction of the story. Is it better? Is it worse? Let me know! Reviews will definitely encourage the writing of chapter 3!**

**Points is you noticed my teeny break from the Marvel Universe for a nod to DC. Their version of SHIELD (sort of) is SHADE. It's way less cool.**


	3. Chapter 3

After a decidedly horrid evening, Zinia awoke before the sun had even risen thanks to the shrill cry of a horn from somewhere outside the palace. The sound had initially worked its way into her dream — a birthday picnic on Vanaheim with her sisters and dozens of different types of pie when Nanshe suddenly had a vision and began to scream again — but gradually the fog of the dream faded into real life. Around her, her handmaids were sitting up and rubbing sleep from their eyes just before they began scurrying about to decipher the source of the noise and relay the information to their princess.

Zinia already knew what the sound was marking, though. It was Thor's herald, awakening the city to let the people know an important announcement was to be made. One of her handmaids returned from outside the chamber to hand Zinia a scroll of paper.

"From one of the Asgardian palace guards," she explained, "He said they've been distributed across the city."

"Thank you," Zinia said, absently, before unrolling the parchment and reading.

_Citizens of Asgard, _

_Prince Thor, son of Odin, requests full attendance at noon this day before the palace. The great King Odin, son of Bor, has fallen into Odinsleep and, in his absence, a formal Address to the City is to be held to relay current pertinent information to the Asgardian public. _

_Each citizen is thanked for their compliance. _

Zinia rolled her eyes and sank back into her pillows. If that note had been delivered across the city, she had no clue why the abrasive wake-up call was necessary. She forced herself out of bed anyway, knowing that she would need to be punctual to be by Thor's side for his speech. And she had an outfit to plan. Honestly, she knew she'd be causing a ruckus but she had not been expecting to address the whole of Asgard on the second day of her trip.

Thor was to announce Loki's impending _formal _placement on the throne but everyone knew Thor was far more heavily favored amongst the Asgardian citizens. So with whom should she choose to stand in solidarity? Thor was perpetually in silver and red while Loki in green and gold. She could hardly wear all of those at once. She'd be offered her own moment to address the crowds, of course; they _had_ specified they'd be announcing the return of Vanir power, after all. Zinia had a long history with public speaking and she knew that the subtleties of one's dress never went unnoticed.

"Ladies," she said with a resigned sigh, "Lay out my dresses."

* * *

On her way to Thor's address to the public, Zinia was briefly thrown off-guard. In an open circular room with a great domed ceiling between her quarters and the balcony where Thor would be speaking, Odin lay surrounded by guardsmen. Here, in this lofty room, he was laid out with great dignity, dressed in golden armor. It made Zinia wonder where, exactly, Loki had been keeping him before she arrived. She decided it would be unwise to ask and that she was somewhat hesitant to know the answer besides.

Last night she had literally told Loki that she wanted to cut his face off. Now he was about to become an official King of Asgard. Asgard was supposed to be Vanaheim's strongest ally. Her trip was, so far, turning out to be rather unsuccessful. She thought about all of this while staring down at Odin and wondering what her situation would have been like were he awake and well. If her Aunt Frigga had not died, she'd have had no claim to retake Yggdrasil at all and she felt a wave of guilt about her opportunistic nature. Truthfully, when Frigga had died it did not immediately cross her mind to regain Vanir control. It was not until Loki's deceit that she began planning. And, really, who was she to play such a strong role in Asgardian affairs, be they deceitful or not?

As soon as the thoughts came into her mind she banished them, with a scowl. Was Loki somehow in charge of her thoughts now? Before she'd been so sure of her rights. The only thing that brought her pause now was _him_. He who could not simply see the truth in her claims! Loki was in the wrong here. There was no doubt about that.

With renewed confidence, she whirled away from Odin and continued heading towards the balcony for the speech. Earlier in the morning, she'd finally found a compromise in her dress. She'd opted for another red gown, just like what chosen for her arrival but not velvet, a much lighter, almost transparent material crafted by the Light Elves of Alfheim. Covering her further in various places, so as not to be unseemly, were thin plates of golden armor. And atop her head, she'd opted for her golden antler crown, similar to the helmet Loki himself wore. She decided against wearing her towering crown of ice from Jotunheim, as now was not the time to remind anyone of Loki's true heritage.

When she got to the balcony, Thor was already there but Loki was not. She could hear the raucous discussion of the Asgardians below.

"Are you ready, Princess?" Thor asked her.

She nodded, without opting to say anything, and he lead the way out, apparently not thrown-off by the fact that Loki wasn't present. Still, there were two seats present beyond the podium. As Thor immediately stepped up to the block to give his speech, Zinia took one of the two seats behind him… wondering where Loki could possibly be when the second of the seats was so obviously left for him.

The speech was a trudging one despite the serious news they had to cover. Zinia wondered if public speaking simply wasn't Thor's strong suit or if was a typical Asgardian flaw. Odin had been at his best when giving pragmatic militaristic reports. Addressing the Vanir Royal Family beyond that had always been a limited affair. Thor seemed to have inherited his father's ability to formulate sound plans and similarly lacked an ability to captivate a crowd.

Or did he? When they'd first walked out, the Asgardian citizens below had gone wild at the site of their golden prince. And now, as he was moving on to recount the invasion of the Dark Elves and Odin falling into seemingly unbreakable sleep, though Zinia found his style boring, the crowds below were held in rapt attention.

He took a great deal of time to reiterate Odin's many virtues as a ruler and countless battle success before reminding everyone that though the All-Father was currently lost, he was not gone forever. And finally the speech shifted.

"But though Asgard is now without one of it's greatest heroes _another_, by miracle of our Great Tree Yggdrasil, has returned," Thor said. "My brother, Prince Loki, has awakened from his own nearly-fatal wounds on Svartalfheim and returned to Asgard."

Okay, now it made sense. They didn't want Loki's initial presence onstage to distract from the news about Odin. He was basically returning from the dead, after all.

Here Thor turned around and gestured to the palace behind them where Loki was finally entering dressed in his typical emerald robes, gold armor, and towering helmet with antlers that matched hers alarmingly well. The crowd's applause rose again, though not nearly to the level when Thor had entered, and Loki seemed surprised to receive any at all. He promptly took a seat next to her, not even offering a glance her way, perched right on the edge of the chair like an anxious schoolchild.

"As you'll remember, it was thanks to Loki's self-sacrifice on the battle I lead on Svartalfheim to defeat Malekith that I am alive today. The All-Father's faith was restored in Loki," Thor lied smoothly. Zinia checked Loki's for any betrayal of emotion but his expression was unchanging.

"As such," Thor continued, "While I go in search through the Nine Realms for a means of waking the All-Father, Prince Loki will rule Asgard in my stead. Please join me in welcoming him to the helm of our Shining City."

Loki stood and walked up besides Thor. The crowds cheered politely below but not without a considerable amount of murmuring and noisy discussion. Zinia thought he might make a speech of his own but simply raised a hand in curt wave before retaking his seat beside her.

"There is a final announcement, and we have another speaker here today," Thor said, "But I hope you will first allow for a moment of silence to keep King Odin in all of our hearts."

Loki outright snorted but, luckily, it couldn't have been heard from this high up… Zinia hoped. At first, she bowed her head respectively. But then the moment carried on. And carried on. And carried on further still. And finally she had to raise her head to see when in the name of The Nine Thor planned to end this scene.

Thor's back was still facing her and his head was bowed towards his podium. But Loki was finally acknowledging her. He was studying her and didn't stop or look bothered in the slightest when she met his gaze. She had to admit that she was feeling quite abashed about the previous evening's spectacle. Even if she firmly believed Loki was in the wrong, she never lost her temper in such a manner. He was looking her up and down, though not in an outwardly lewd way that she could tell. His eyes rested atop her towering antlers that looked so like the ones on his own helmet. He was too shrewd not to understand that it was a symbolic gesture to show she stood in solidarity with his rule — whether he believed her intentions or not remained to be seen.

She made a questioning motion with her head towards Thor. Loki rolled his eyes and offered a short, but real, smile and actually looked like he wanted to laugh. Zinia was startled by the wave of relief that swelled inside her. A smile was something. It wasn't an official peace treaty or even close but it was something. She smiled back and, as she did, Thor finally raised his head.

"And now, allow me to introduce Princess Zinia of Vanaheim, the first daughter of the Spring of Mimir, and future Queen of the Nine Realms of the Cosmos of Yggdrasil," Thor said using her full title, which she thought highly appropriate for the event.

She rose gracefully, the heavy antler crown atop her head luckily not causing a balance problem, and approached the podium. The crowds were cheering again, loudly this time like they had for Thor. Regardless of whether or not they'd like the news she came baring, they were certainly excited to see a member of the oldest ruling family of Yggdrasil for the first time since Frigga's death.

"Citizens of Asgard, thank you for your warm welcome," she began, "I extend my deepest sympathies to you all, and to my dear cousins, for the loss of King Odin and my aunt, Queen Frigga."

It was strange to address Loki as a cousin. He wasn't technically and she suspected he considered her no more of a cousin than he did Thor a brother. Still she thought to remind these people of her relations would only help her in this case.

"As you all well know, the marriage of Frigga and Odin was part of an alliance between the realms of Vanaheim and Asgard," she said, "And that Vanaheim has always maintained supreme ruling power over the Nine Realms even with Asgard in command."

She paused a moment to try to gauge the reaction of the masses below her but couldn't. Secretly, she was longing to look back to gauge Loki and Thor's reactions too but knew that would be the death of her authority as an orator.

"With the dissolution of the marital contract in the loss of both rulers, be Odin's permanent or not, Vanaheim is now prepared to retake complete control of the Nine Realms," she said.

Immediately frenzied discussion bubbled up from the citizens. One of the two men behind her made a motion to stand, probably Thor, but she discretely put a hand behind her to motion for them to stop.

"I have just had my majority naming day and am currently on progress through Yggdrasil. In just a few weeks time I will return to Vanaheim for my coronation as Queen," she said, once the crowds had quieted. "Make no mistake, Asgard's main rule will remain in the very capable hands of your two princes. But any action concerning any of the other realms, be it Midgard or Svartalfheim, will be under Vanir authority henceforth."

The people were still looking up at her expectantly, so she tacked on what she hoped was an agreeable conclusion.

"I hope to see as much of your realms as possible while I am here. And rest assured, I will not leave until a smooth transition of power is secured," she said, "Thank you."

As she turned, Zinia wanted nothing more than to walk off the balcony, but she was forced to take a seat when Thor stood again. The people behind her did not applaud her; they were still fiercely discussing the announcement. Hopefully there would be no push back from the people. She doubted there would, as they'd been living under a monarchy for eons, but her announcement was still an intimidating one to make.

"And I will remain a few days longer for all the necessary political discussions required while the Princess is here. But soon I will be leaving to search for a cure for Odin. Thank you, citizens of Asgard!"

Polite applause rose up a final time. She and Loki stood as well and she momentarily felt herself stumble. Perhaps her nerves from the announcement had affected her more than she had anticipated. It had possibly been the largest crowd she'd ever spoken in front of. Shockingly, Loki actually offered his arm to her when seeing her grow unsteady and she gratefully accepted it. Always over-interpreting any actions when it came to the God of Mischief, Zinia assumed that his help was only offered because they were in public.

It seemed she was right because the moment they were indoors he dropped her arm and began heading to the throne room. Zinia looked after him, appalled by his attitude all over again.

"As usual, I apologize for Loki. But I hope you won't mind taking the rest of the afternoon to entertain yourself? There is much I need to do to prepare for tonight. As I am not staying long, there are some people I'd like you to meet to have on your side while you stay in Asgard… it appears Loki will not be."

Zinia nodded with grim acceptance. "Of course, I will be fine today," she said and, then as Thor turned to go, "But I am going to do whatever it takes to change that."

Thor smiled but looked unconvinced, "He's very stubborn."

"So am I," she said, with a smile back.

* * *

She walked into dinner that evening not in the best of moods. Hoping to peruse the palace's undoubtedly extensive library and archives, she and her ladies had walked in to be met by dozens of Loki's Asgardian scholars. Varying drafts of the treaty and documents securing Odin and Frigga's marriage, in every conceivable language, were all laid out across the library's many tables and the scholars were bustling about at great speed, none-the-wiser to her presence. Of course she had known, deep down, that Loki would perpetuate his little game, but part of her had hoped that with Thor still as eager as ever to give up his crown that Loki would have softened somewhat.

Still, she could not let her disappointment show. Henceforth she was to do her best to get on Loki's good side… if that were possible.

That evening's festivities weren't exactly a celebration for Asgard's new king, as that would have been disrespectful to the all-but-dead All-Father. And at the head of the table, Loki looked quite miserable. Zinia couldn't help but feel pleased after he'd spoiled her naming day just the previous evening, but she suspected his dissatisfaction had more to do with their present company than the lack of fanfare.

Seated with them around the table were several of Thor's friends and fellow warriors: Fandral, Volstagg, and Sif. Beneath the table, Shadowcat lounged in luxury, snapping up any stray scraps that fell to the floor. Admittedly, Thor's warriors were a peculiar bunch, though not unpleasant. Furthermore, Zinia suspected she could grow to like them very much indeed if their mere presence made Loki this uncomfortable. Volstagg was about the most jovial man she'd ever met within Yggdrasil. Despite the rate at which he was consuming the many plates of food before him, it did nothing to slow his flow of conversation. He told her tale after tale of battles and their trips to Midgard and the Jotunheim alike. Loki's face was creased in a perpetual frown every time the Jotunheim was mentioned.

Sif, however, could not seem to keep her eyes off of Zinia's clothes. She had never seen anything that looked like quite such a… contraption. The golden armor was sparse, only present on areas of her body that needed covering through the barely-there red fabric from Alfheim. It served absolutely no purpose for battle, though Zinia was a skilled fighter as all the Vanir women were. Sif was very clearly prepared for battle at any given time; her armor served its true purpose. Zinia suspected Sif may have found her wardrobe, comparatively, obscene. She'd have to remember to invite the woman to spar with her one day; such a good friend of Thor's deserved winning over.

Fandral also couldn't seem to keep his eyes off of Zinia and he wasn't at all afraid to flirt. Thor and Sif alike were watching him nervously, and Zinia strongly suspected he had a reputation for saying much more obscene things. So far, two glasses of mean into dinner, he hadn't leveled anything worse at her than "So the Vanir women are as beautiful as we are told!" Loki had dramatically rolled his eyes at that which, admittedly, stung a bit but she kept her expression neutral.

"We used to have a good friend from your realm," Volstagg informed her, "Hogun, the last of our group that made us the Warriors Three. Alas, he has retired to his home."

"I know my family already sent out their thanks for helping us to secure that impoverished corner of our realm," she said, "But allow me to reiterate it again. My parents were content to let Odin intercede in any military action and I will value your insight and experience in the coming days of our trip."

That cue alone got Fandra and Sif started on one discussion Nornheim, the home of the Rock Trolls now that they'd been banished from their occupation on Vanaheim, from Hogun's small town specifically. Meanwhile Thor was reminded of his defeat of Ulik, the once purportedly unbeatable Rock Troll while Fandral listened on as if he hadn't heard the tale dozens of times before or hadn't been present himself.

Zinia chanced a look at Loki who was still surveying everything with bored eyes from his position at the head of the table. When he saw her looking, he met her stare and cocked his head in an expecting gesture.

"The citizens of Asgard seemed to take the news of your rule well today," she said, tentatively.

"I suspect they weren't really all that surprised. I _was _already King once before when Thor was briefly banished to Midgard. It seems who holds the throne is perpetually changing these past few years," he said resignedly.

"Well, hopefully, we've come across a permanent solution now," she said, not sure if she was being sincere or not. She was careful to lower her tone at this remark too, lest any lingering Odin-supporters be dining with them.

Loki regarded her with narrowed eyes, still obviously suspicious. Given their past few discussions that seemed warranted.

"Yes, let us hope," he agreed in a disengaged tone.

Zinia was struggling with what she could say next to emphasize her sincerity when she saw something move from the corner of her eye.

Curling its way between her plate and her goblet was a long, thin, black snake. To say her breath didn't hitch in her throat at first would have been a lie; she was startled. But Zinia wasn't afraid of snakes, much less unreal magic-crafted snakes. Something about the shimmer of its scales, and a chilled feeling within her bones as it slithered closer to her, signaled that it was an illusion. Loki's illusion. Zinia put out her hand and the creature wrapped around her forearm loosely.

Everyone at the table was watching and silent. Sif was finally looking at her with some amount of respect. She lowered her hand, allowing the creature to slide off and then began summoning her own, light magic. Appearing from behind her neck was her own snake, a beautiful opalescent white with red eyes. Her snake warmed her bones, rather than chilling them. It curled around her arm as it made its way down to the table. Once there, the two snakes approached one another, intertwining and wrapping themselves together beneath the plate.

Very suddenly, Zinia was hit with the sensation of being touched by someone. Touched intimately. Touched somewhere deep within her chest. She sucked in a quick breath before waving a hand to make her snake disappear. Loki raised his hand in a half-hearted gesture before the black snake did as well.

She looked over at him, desperate to see if he had just experienced the sensation she had. If he had, he gave no sign other than a flicker of amusement behind his eyes.

"Thank you, Loki," she said with as much confidence as she could muster, "I am not used to having someone as skilled with magic as myself with whom to practice. That was very enjoyable."

But whatever she had felt from their magic interacting was still causing her heart to beat wildly. She gestured for her ladies.

"I hope you will forgive me, but this morning's early wake-up call has left me a little out of sorts," she said, "I feel I must retire from the festivities early."

Thor, Sif, Volstagg, and Fandral all rose immediately with a gracious "Good evening, Princess." Sif and Volstagg looked at her with somewhat disappointed eyes and she knew she wasn't making a good first impression. She must have seemed weak in that moment. Loki remained seated, simply offering a quiet "Princess," before she strode out of the room.

Zinia felt like crying. Her trip was not going well, at all. Thor seemed to be her only true ally and he was to return to Midgard any day now. She could not leave Asgard until she had secured a good relationship but she seemed doomed to make a fool out of herself at every turn.

She walked briskly to stay ahead of her ladies because now, with all of these anxious thoughts piling up, a few errant tears really were beginning to fall. Even Shadowcat was giving her some space, trailing behind with her ladies.

She felt her tears hit her cheeks Shadowcat abruptly leapt forward in a mighty pounce, launching his body half way up the palace wall next to her. She saw an iridescent black snake creeping alongside her on the walls, higher up now to avoid the great cat. Anger welled within her, and dark magic she had never felt before came with the emotion. Without thinking, a blast of ice shot out of her hand at the creature. It missed it by several feet, as the snake slithered higher still on the wall to watch from a place of safety.

Her ladies gasped behind her and Zinia stared down at her own hand in awe. The skin of her hand had turned completely alabaster, but was rapidly fading back to its usual tan. She looked up at the wall where the snake seemed to be inspecting her ice. Ignoring the snake, she took a closer look as well. She recognized the water that made up that ice; there was no mistaking the lustrous blues. It had come from the waters of Mimir that ran within her. Her dark magic had never shown itself before and Zinia was scared by the lack of control she had over it.

Glaring up at the snake, at least content that she was no longer crying in front of Loki's little spy, she continued the walk to her quarters.

* * *

**Thanks so much to everyone who reviewed. I was very happy to hear that you prefer this new direction for the story. I like this new version better too, so we're all happy! Well, Loki isn't happy but he is almost never happy. **

**I'd love to hear your thoughts on the update; I had a lot of ground to cover in this chapter… basic scenes that had to happen for everything to make sense. I tried keep it interesting but definitely feel like it may have gotten a bit slow in the middle there. Now that all the basic ducks are in a row, though, the next chapter should be much more enticing. **


	4. Chapter 4

That night, Zinia dreamt of snakes. She was lying in grey wasteland as dozens of them approached her all of them either completely black or completely white. Just like the snakes from the previous evening the black snakes gave off a distinct cooling sensation while the white ones emitted warmth. As they got closer and closer, she felt her pulse and breath quicken together. No, she was not scared of snakes, but being approached by so many was not exactly comforting. They swarmed over her body in unison and she felt herself sinking into the grey sand beneath her because of the weight. Hot and cold, all over her, in a sickly sensation of being doused in too much opposing magic at once.

Strangely, the white snakes began to bother her more. Their bodies stopped giving off mere warmth and outright became hot to the touch — scalding, even. Against them, she struggled, attempting to writhe away. She was sure she her flesh was burning under their touch. And then, quite suddenly, they all left her. A brightness had appeared on the horizon of the lifeless vista which scared them all away. In the distance, a glowing azure snake approached. She wasn't afraid of this snake, though its color threatened poison. She reached out her hand and it wound its way up, lifting its head upon reaching her elbow to stare her straight in the eye. Zinia felt the urge to speak to it, but was just opening her mouth when the dream cut off.

When she awoke, she almost thought the dream a vision. It had been so potent and her visions always came in the form of dreams though, luckily, she never screamed like her sister Nanshe. Still, she would have awoken her ladies had the dream been a vision. She shook terribly, as if in the throes of a seizure, when she had one. Instead, she had woken gripping Shadowcat's mane tightly, but the lion slept peacefully next to her.

It was early yet, none of her ladies had awoken. But Zinia was feeling energized both from the anxiety of the dream and from how early she'd chosen to retire the previous evening. Today, she didn't feel the shadow of Dark Magic flowing within her and she felt more confident and in control.

Stepping softly out of bed so as not to wake anyone, she clothed herself in a simple velvet green sheath dress and padded out of the room with bare feet so as to go further undetected. She could only hope that, at this hour, Loki would be asleep and she'd have no more of his spying creatures to deal with. She suspected she'd second-guess every animal she found on Asgard henceforth.

The sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon though the arched windows of the palace halls. Peering down to the city below, she could make out the shapes of early risers preparing for the day. Merchants were loading their wares into carts. In the fields even further out, she could make out horses and plows with farmers who had undoubtedly already been up for hours.

She kept walking, past the library which was empty. Loki's scholars must have still been sleeping. She wondered when they'd be ordered awake and back to work. She worked her way through several more hallways, her only company the occasional sleeping guard and even more occasional awake guard, before she past the room where Odin was sleeping. The great doors to his chambers were sealed now and the men posted out front the only alert looking men she'd seen so far this morning. They saluted her as she walked by, but she made no motion to enter.

The sun was up enough to light the sky in beautiful sunrise pinks and oranges when she came to an opening in the walls that lead down marble stairs to an open grass garden. In the center of it, Sif and Fandral were dueling viciously while Volstagg watched from the sidelines, sharpening a blade.

For a moment, she chose to peek out at them privately from behind a pillar. Lady Sif was as graceful as a dancer when she fought. Fandral was smooth, to be sure, pushing forth clean lunge after clean lunge and putting Sif on the defensive. But Sif was not in any real danger; she was lithe and spun to dodge each of the moves with ease before, finally, catching Fandral in a split second of weak footing, she propelled herself into an offensive attack. Performing a stunning balestra while Fandral tried to regain his sure stance, he was pushed onto his back with Sif's blade leveled at his throat. In the midst of the advance, he'd even dropped his own blade.

It was at this moment she chose to appear, applauding lightly as she descended the staircase.

"Lady Sif, my sisters and I would find you a worthy opponent," she complimented from the middle of the stairs.

Whirling to face her, Sif's surprised face immediately morphed into a more neutral expression and she bowed low, as did Volstagg behind her. An embarrassed looking Fandral took a moment to get to his feet before he also dipped down in respect.

"Good morning, fair princess," Fandral said, speaking first as usual, "I must say this is unexpected surprise."

"As it is for me," she replied, "I've been wandering these halls for half an hour now without a single sign of life beyond the palace guards. I was beginning to think it an Asgardian custom for those of noble birth to sleep away the day."

"Only for Volstagg," Sif was quick to offer looking over to a large friend, "Sleeping away the night's feast is usually a custom for him. But we roused him early today. I suspect everyone else is simply preparing for the day. We chose to practice early and beat the sun."

Zinia nodded in agreement before gesturing the pristine blades all three warriors were holding.

"I recognize your weapons," she said. They were made in Vanaheim, Vanir steel, one of the many gifts she'd brought for her visit. She'd delivered several hundred total to the palace.

"Are you enjoying them?" she asked.

Volstagg gave her an emphatic and appreciative nod. "Light weight but trenchant," he said simply.

"That's the nature of Vanir steel," Fandral interceded, "But it's the fine craftsmanship that gives them such superb balance."

"What a shame that balance could not have helped your foot, Fandral," Sif added making Zinia immediately laugh aloud with Volstagg. Fandral looking momentarily affronted before acquiescing and laughing himself.

"Would you mind terribly if I joined you? I usually practice whenever I have a chance with my sisters," she said.

Lady Sif looked immediately pleased but Fandral stopped her, "But princess, you wear no armor," he pointed out.

"Oh, I won't need any," she replied simply, "And please call me Zinia."

"How shall we divide the teams?" Fandral asked as Volstagg handed her a spare blade, "Men against women?"

Sif and Zinia traded smirking glances. "Sounds a bit unfair to you two, but alright," Sif said confidently.

After seeing Sif defeat Fandral so quickly, Zinia was more eager to engage Volstagg but Sif apparently had the same idea, so she made due. Either way, both men were proving formidable foes. Fandral was always immediately offensive, swinging down his blade which she caught with her own in a quick beat before forcing his into a bind. Leaving his blade at such an angle disturbed his leverage and Zinia pushed with the full weight of her body to send him stepping a few feet backwards.

Next to her, Volstagg was performing feint after feint with his sword, forcing Sif to respond to each attack while simultaneously pushing her downward into a near crouching position. In the split second before Fandral could respond from her push. Zinia swung her sword at Volstagg's legs, he jumped and dodged her easily, but it allowed Sif to regain surer footing and straighten her posture.

Using the momentum from her swing at Volstagg to her advantage, she continued the arcing motion of her sword upwards to clash dramatically with Fandral at the moment of his return.

"You _are _clever," he said with a smile, their faces inches apart as they both pushed their full weight against the blades. Locked in a stall, they broke apart and back into starting positions to see who would attack first.

"When you're about to be the Queen of Nine Realms," Zinia said, making a cut through the air, "You have to be."

He deflected her easily. A cut was a sloppy move that Zinia almost never chose to use.

Sif was backing Volstagg into a wall with astoundingly strong attacks and Zinia stole one of Sif's moves in an attempt to block Fandral before dislodging his blade from his hand. Unfortunately, he must have been familiar with this trick of Sif's because he was prepared and exactly the opposite happened. Her blade was sent flying several feet away.

"Not _too_ clever," he said with a laugh, not afraid to be bold during a training exercise.

He lowered his sword to her neck but Zinia performed a last ditch evasive move where she dropped a hand to the ground and lowered her whole body so that he had to lean over as well to reach her. In the midst of his motion to follow her drop, she reached beneath the folds of her dress to produce a dagger. As soon he was close enough, she leaned forward, past his quickly approaching blade and held the dagger to the pulse of his neck. His attack immediately stopped.

"Clever enough," she responded.

"Oh that was too easy, boys," Sif said next to her.

Zinia looked over to see Volstagg on the ground, pinned in the corner of a wall, with Sif's sword held to his neck. Zinia walked a foot away from Fandral where her fallen blade was sticking hilt up straight out of the ground.

"Too easy?" she asked Sif as she approached the female warrior with her sword "You know what they say… Allies in war, enemies in battle."

"I've never heard that one," Sif replied, her face showing nothing but good humor, "But I'll be happy to play along."

Sif turned from Volstagg, blade still in hand, as the two men collected to watch from the side. They began attacking each other with such equal force that it was not immediately clear who was offensive and who was defensive. To change that up, Zinia began to lunge in a direction that slowly forced Sif to the left until they had made a circle with Sif's facing east towards the ever rising sun. With the light now in her opponent's eyes Zinia felt sure she had the upper hand.

But her overconfidence proved to be her hubris. Sif, seeing Zinia's trick, played off of it. She tilted her sword at such an angle that it caught the sunlight and glinted quite sharply into Zinia's own eyes. Temporarily blinded, and seeing sunspots even upon regaining her vision, Sif was able to push Zinia's sword from her grip, sending it flying over both their heads to lie in the grass behind Sif.

Zinia made a pass at her own thigh, realizing that her dagger was left on the ground from her fight with Fandral. Sif pressed forward rapidly and Zinia was left with only one option. She teleported behind Sif, grabbed her blade and had it pressed to the back of Sif's neck in seconds.

From the sidelines Fandral was clapping and laughing heartily. Sif turned to face Zinia admitting defeat.

"That was a coward's move," Zinia said of her teleportation, dropping the sword to her side and crossing the ground for her dagger, "I will admit that as a warrior, you bested me, Lady Sif."

She tucked the dagger back into her dress and held out her hand which Sif graciously accepted with a genuine smile.

"Had it been real battle, there is no cowardice in using what tools you have available," she responded. "Magic is one of yours." Zinia returned the smile but could not help but wonder if Loki's magic had been so readily accepted here in the past. He did not seem popular as a ruler, much less an honorable warrior.

"Well it was certainly an entertaining display, in either case!" Fandral declared as he and Volstagg walked over, "Perhaps you could tell us more about magic in battle-"

"-Actually," Sif interrupted, "I was wondering if you might take a walk with me, Zinia?"

"Of course, Lady Sif, I'd be deleted," she responded warmly.

"Just one thing. If I am not to call you princess, you must only call me Sif," she said as they strode further beyond the training ground to yet another terrace below the first which appeared to open unto some gardens.

"Sif, then," she said and followed her fighting companion down into the gardens.

Though the sun had risen higher still, Zinia still couldn't imagine it was even quite the time when most people were eating breakfast. She could feel, but luckily not hear, her stomach growling as they walked. But Zinia was too interested to hear what Sif could want to talk to her about privately to put her off in favor of food.

Once they were sufficiently into the gardens and certain they were alone, Sif began.

"That was a cruel trick Loki played on you last evening," she said.

"I'm not sure _cruel_ is the right word," she countered, "But I agree that the trick was at least somewhat malicious in nature. After all, he had no idea I wasn't afraid of snakes."

"If you weren't, I hope you don't mind my asking why you left so suddenly?" Sif asked.

Zinia paused before responding, "Do you know why they call the Vanir daughters 'Daughters of the Spring of Mimir?'"

"It is rumored that the Royal women of Vanaheim give birth to their daughters in the Spring," Sif said, "Frigga never confirmed it though I, admittedly, never presumed myself close enough to her to ask such an intimate detail."

"The rumors are true," Zinia confirmed, "We don't give birth to any sons in the Spring because women rule on Vanaheim, not men. It is considered a great honor to be born in the Spring."

"Because it imbues you with magic of the Spring?" she asked.

"Yes. And because Mimir is fed from the ice of the Jotunheim, it specifically gives us dark magic," she explained, "Every other being on Vanaheim, male or females that aren't royalty, are just like you Aesir — brilliant fighters with the chance of being born with powers of Light Magic."

"So the Royal Vanir women are the only beings in the Nine Realms to possess both Dark and Light Magic?" Sif asked, working everything out.

Zinia nodded. "But because we spend most of our life on Vanaheim… few of us ever leaving, the Dark Magic of Mimir is never brought out. Vanaheim is a golden realm, much like Asgard," she said and stopped to overlook the Bifrost from a great distance away.

"This is all very interesting, Zinia, but what does it have to do with last evening?" Sif asked.

Zinia sighed. "Loki's magic is Dark Magic. Last night, his simple trick touched something deep within my core that I have never had access to before, something I have no control over, in fact," she explained, "It took a lot out of me."

Glancing over to her companion, Sif looked decided perturbed. "His magic hurts you?" she asked, concern apparent in her tone.

"No…" Zinia said, unsure, "I must confess I do not fully know what effect it has on me. It seems to touch my own Dark Magic. But as I have never _really_ used it before, I am like a young child learning to control my powers all over again. It is difficult. And children have limitless energy; I, unfortunately, do not."

"We must alert Thor to this before he leaves for Midgard," Sif said firmly, "He must speak with Loki."

"The King," Zinia corrected her, "He must speak with your King. You must get used to saying that. He doesn't strike me as the type to be lax in formalities, not when his struggle to rule was so hard won."

Sif sighed, putting a hand to her forehead as if she was still finding it difficult to cope with Loki as King once again.

"And, I'm not sure I agree with you anyway, Sif," Zinia pressed, "King Loki and I are not on the best terms right now… he despises me, in fact. He views Vanir rule as a threat, and invalid to boot. I must get on better terms with him if we are both to rule peacefully."

"Is there anything we can do to help? Surely, Thor-"

"-For now, it is simply enough to know I have friends here," Zinia said, clasping one of Sif's hands as if she were speaking to one of her six sisters, "I was worried I'd be left without a confidant once Thor returned to Midgard. And I know your insight into my interactions with the King will prove invaluable. After all, you've battled both alongside him and against him."

"I grew up with him," Sif said, "There was once a time I would have said I considered him as much a friend as Thor or Fandral or… but not now. He's changed."

"We all change," Zinia admitted, "But we can't escape our past. Your knowledge into the King's is a tool I sorely need. We should leave now, though. The sun continues its ascent and I would like to attempt to break my fast with the King, alone."

* * *

The previous day had been exceedingly strange for Loki and he now found himself a proper ruler of Asgard, seemingly no strings attached. At Thor's less-than-rousing speech, the people had even applauded him. Not the cheers that Thor got merely from being present, no, but it was definitely preferable to having to commandeer a dangerous army, endure torture, and battle a league of super-Midgardians to gain a throne.

And part of him, after his announcement at the ceremony, wondered if he should be content with that. Zinia, it was difficult _not _to notice, had looked lovely. And that antler crown — she was making a gesture, that was plain to see and he was at least mildly mollified by it. It almost matched his own. Sitting together, they almost looked like they ruled Asgard together.

It had been with that though, as they left the balcony together, that his mood soured again. Given everything he'd been through, Loki was not one to trust others. He didn't like the idea of the Vanir ruling over him to begin with and he certainly didn't like the idea that Zinia would either one day take Asgard as her own or put Thor back in power once his time on Midgard had ended.

Still he wasn't sure what to do about it. His scholars were still hunting for the tiniest detail that might threaten Zinia's claims. They had come to report to him before that evening's feast, letting him know they'd found nothing. It appeared it really was Zinia's time to rule again. Of course, he had all but kicked the man out before insisting that they keep looking.

So, Loki had nothing left to do at this point but brood and investigate and plot. Investigate to see if the Vanir princess really was a threat or not. Plot to have a plan and / or back-up plan, pending the results of his investigation. And, of course, brood. Mostly brood.

At the previous evening's celebration, there had been a considerable amount of brooding to be done. The fanfare of his reinstatement as king really wasn't sufficient. But they had to be respectful to the _great_ Odin, which served to further annoy him. And surrounding him were the people he disliked most in the world — Thor and his dumb friends. Why not really sink the knife in and invite The Avengers?

Most pesky of all, Zinia hadn't changed from that barely-there red dress she had worn during the speech. Loki had planned to spend the evening stoically glaring straight ahead at the feasting hall but, instead, he kept finding his gaze drifting over to the Vanir woman. If she'd been anyone else, he would have asked her about her antler crown. How was it that they both came to appropriate the same symbol? He was genuinely curious. It practically blended into her golden hair, which curled softly around her shoulders and back. She looked happy; her bow shaped mouth frequently ticking upwards into what he _supposed_ many men would deem a lovely smile.

In fact, he knew that other men would deem pretty much anything about her lovely because Fandral had attempted to monopolize the poor woman's attention the entire evening. Ever a gracious ruler, she did not allow that to happen, and attempted to engage everyone in conversation. She was politic, he'd give her that much. And when Fandral outright commented on her beauty, she did not falter but courteously accepted the compliment. Fandral, though basically a dog who would bed any and all women he could, in Loki's opinion, did have a tendency to only devote his time to stunning women. Loki couldn't decide which was more annoying — the fact that Fandral was so blatantly flirting with a woman far above his station, or the fact that he himself couldn't seem to stop staring at Zinia.

At a certain point, it seemed she could no longer ignore his presence and she finally turned towards him.

"Well, hopefully, we've come across a permanent solution now," she had said, in reference to his rule over Asgard. Loki, God of Lies, for once could not interpret the truth or sincerity, or lack thereof, in her statement. He decided, to be safe, he'd assume she was being insincere. And the idea that she might be subtly patronizing him made him fly into an internal rage.

_Well then_, he had thought to himself, _if you're going to act like a snake… _

He'd made one of his black serpents, the same kind he'd been creating since he was a child, materialize onto the table. He wasn't able to disguise a smile when he saw her body make a tiny jump upon seeing it. But then, sensing the magic, she went and ruined his fun by allowing the illusion to climb up her arm.

It was strange. In a way it was the closest he'd been to her. His magic was an extension of himself, after all. Stranger still, was when she began to play the game back. Her own snake materialized, radiating warmth and light typical of Light Magic.

But then the two had touched, their magic interacting, and it was like Loki could _feel_ a part of her inside him. He'd interacted with other magical beings before, and had experienced shades of this sensation… enough so that he did wear her abrupt look of surprise. Surely she had experienced the cross of magic with her sisters on Vanaheim? But even he had to admit, the intensity of the feeling, like a sharp zap of intense lightning that started behind his eyes and worked its way down in a warm calming sensation to his chest — as well as the distinct sense that, for a brief moment, he and Zinia were one in the same — was different than anything he typically experienced. Though he didn't show it as comically as she did on his face, he was disarmed enough to remove his illusion immediately after she did her own.

It was so curious, that it actually warranted talking to her further about but, at that moment she had hurriedly left the feast. Anxious to know what was going on in her mind, he conjured a more sinister serpent to follow her along the walls, a part of his mind disengaged from the feast so that he could watch her. While the rest of the guests in the hall saw Loki zoned out as he had been for the majority of the feast, Loki was viewing another scene, directly within the core of his mind as if he was fantasizing it.

Zinia was crying. His first inclination was to feel put off but it was a rather curious display. In supposed privacy, she had no games to play, no act to put on. The tears seemed genuine. He felt a tingling of guilt stir in his stomach before he banished the emotion. What did he have to feel guilty about? They had just been playing around with childrens' illusions; she had been a willing participant!

Suddenly, her great black beast lunged at his illusion. Loki pulled as if it had been himself the cat was after. Zinia noticed then and he saw her grow irate with anger. And then… as if her actions couldn't surprise him anymore, she began to transform. Her tan morphed into a deathly pallor, even her hair losing its golden glow in favor of white. Her hand grew whitest of all and she used it to fling out a powerful blast of ice at his illusion.

He dodged again, a forced reaction as nothing could hurt the illusion. Zinia looked down at her hand in abject shock, her color slowly returning to normal. In the hall behind her, her maids were whispering to each other worriedly. Zinia ignored them as well as his illusion and stomped off to her room.

There was no way around it; that had been Dark Magic and it appeared it had been her first time intentionally using it.

So now, Loki stood alone at a corner desk in his chambers, pouring over some scrolls on the Spring of Mimir. He was also looking through a history of the Vanir rulers, looking for telltale clues about their use of Dark Magic. It appeared that, though the royal women possessed the ability, they hadn't used it for centuries… at least not in a powerful enough form to warrant being recorded for history. The map of Yggdrasil showed Mimir twisting through space to connect the Nine Realms — at one end was his own birthplace, the Jotunheim.

Loki had not discovered his heritage until late in life… and he did not miss the irony that she was just now realizing her link to that world as well. Still, he had always had full control of his magic; but that had partly been because Frigga was there to guide him. She had known his heritage. She had taught him to master the dark without ever revealing too much. He doubted such mastery was ever necessary on Vanaheim where the light ruled.

He was tracing a finger over one of Mimir's tributaries when someone wrapped their knuckles against his door. He looked out the window to see it was beyond sunrise but still frowned. He'd asked not to be disturbed.

Crossing the room in just a few long strides, he opened the door to come face to face with none other than Zinia.

"Good morning, Loki," she said cheerfully. Behind her, his guards looked on in worry but he paid them no mind. What were they supposed to do? Send away the purported soon-to-be Queen of Yggdrasil? She was dressed in a simple green tunic with golden sandals, her hair down, with no crown. Alongside her were several servants carrying what appeared to be cover trays of food.

Zinia was worried, though she tried not to show it. She had forgone the formality of 'King' before his name. He may be ruler of Asgard but he was not ruler over _her_. Technically he was supposed to be offering the formalities not the other way around.

She had definitely caught him unawares again. He wasn't wearing any armor or his helmet; he was just dressed in green day robes, much darker than her own pale mint dress. She was glad of this; she felt on more equal footing.

"Princess…" he acknowledged before trailing off.

"I thought we might take breakfast together," she supplied and gestured to the servants around her, "I've had the kitchens prepare a few things."

He was somewhat dumbfounded. This woman was constantly catching him by surprise. Strangely, though, he was not too angry about this. Perhaps it was the residual guilt for spying on her, and getting caught, last night.

"I would be _delighted_," he said, using the most hospitable voice he could muster while still wondering what she was playing at. He stepped to the side gesturing for her to enter.

Once she was inside the servants began bustling about, completely prepared for the most impromptu of orders. At the great oval table she'd sat with him on her first day in Asgard, they began to lay out silverware and glasses as well as plate upon plate of fruits, cheeses, breakfast meats, custards, and pies. As they were finishing, Loki pulled out a chair for her as he had done before on that first day. Liar, trickster, Midgardian-villain… people could call him whatever they wished but he'd still been raised a gentleman.

Taking a seat next to her, he waved the servants out of the room and plucked an apple from the tray. Zinia picked up a pitcher and proceeded to pour herself a goblet of wine; Loki raised his eyebrows. It was first thing in the morning. She ignored his pointed gaze knowing any discussion with Loki was going to need a little help to keep her from losing her temper.

"I apologize for my abrupt departure last night," she said, "I was feeling unwell."

She had officially opened the conversation for him to make the first move. He could either chose to pretend he didn't know the magic had affected her in some way, or he could press her on her experience. He had been so genuinely curious since she'd left the table last night, he opted to simply be straightforward.

"It was the magic," he responded simply before taking a bite of his apple.

"Yes.. but," she started before shaking her head and beginning again, "It was _different_. I practice magic with my sisters all the time on Vanaheim."

"But not Dark Magic?" he questioned, hoping to have his theories confirmed.

"No, not Dark Magic," she replied with a sigh, "It is frowned upon."

"Frowned upon? As a daughter of Mimir, it is in intrinsic part of you," he pushed.

Zinia reached across the table to pick up what appeared to be some sort of pastry. They were pinwheel shaped and flecked with shimmering sprinkles. She put one of his plate before grabbing one for herself. She did not answer him right away.

"They make these on Vanaheim. They're my _favorite_," she explained before taking a bite of the sweet treat and letting it melt in her mouth. "I had the pastry chef in your kitchens prepare them for you to try."

He took a bite. The flakey dough disappeared on his tongue as soon as he closed his mouth. The residual flavor was a medley of sweet — not quite apricot, maybe some fig, definitely a divine syrup. He began to eat the rest of it, as did she.

"Yes, it is an intrinsic part of me," she said finally, "But Light Magic is what built the temples and palaces of Vanaheim. It is what brought the Vanir to power. Our power of sight is Light Magic."

"So you're never trained to use your Dark Magic?" he asked.

"No, but it comes out anyway… as I'm sure you must know," she said.

Loki knew what she was talking about. As a child the most minor annoyance or brief flash of hurt feelings seemed to enough to make him lose control and send furniture flying about the room. Frigga had gotten him through it.

"It's only come out once before, just for a brief second," she said, "Call it a gilded life, I suppose. I was never very angry or hurt as a child. My sisters and I got along extremely well. But there was one time…"

He had finished the pastry and was debating taking a second. Instead he decided to take a cue from Zinia and have some wine, even this early.

"What happened?" he prompted.

"My youngest sister, Anu, was still just a baby. She'd only just learned to talk. I myself a young child," she began, "But Anu had found one of our mother's crowns. A great towering red one, carved straight from a giant garnet. Mother caught her looking at it and she sat Anu down to explain how one day it would belong to her big sister… how one day I'd be Queen."

Zinia paused in the middle of her story to pick up a cluster of grapes and pop a few into her mouth. Loki was watching her in rapt attention.

"Anu got this look on her face as she began to work it all out for the first time. I don't know if she was more mad that she wouldn't get the shiny red crown or that she wouldn't be Queen," Zinia said, "Either way she picked up the crown and smashed it onto the floor where it broke into a million pieces."

"And you were mad…" Loki interjected.

"Yes, but that wasn't when the magic came out. Mother was so swift in her reprimanding that I was momentarily placated," she said, "It was later. We were alone in our playroom and the image of that crown smashed to the floor popped into my mind. I was flooded with anger as if it had happened right in front of me all over again. All I remember is my hands turning white before I reached out to throttle Anu. Later they found us and we were both unconscious but Anu was suffering from severe hypothermia. We never spoke of it again."

Loki sat back in his chair, unaware that he'd been leaning forward closer to in the course of the story. She looked up and regarded him with questioning eyes. He couldn't deny that he wasn't impressed with her honesty and forthrightness. Looking at the tan goddess in front of him now, there was certainly no trace of Dark Magic.

"I think you already know this," he said softly, setting his goblet down, "But I saw you last night, in the hall."

She nodded, not looking upset, before saying, "At dinner, you scared me. Not of the snake, but of what I felt," she paused, mouth parted as she debated what she wanted to add, "And you disappointed me."

He was startled. Of the things he expected her to express — primarily anger — disappointment was not something he'd considered.

"Asgard has been Vanaheim's greatest ally for eons," she said, "I can't bare the thought of that relationship tarnishing now. I believe it would break my heart."

Her voice literally wavered on the tail end of that final thought and Loki was surprised at how genuinely abashed he felt. She stood from the table abruptly and he rose with her.

"I must find Thor to see how much longer he plans to stay. I suspect it won't be very long," she said. "I will see you later I'm sure."

Here she turned to go without even waiting for his reply but he caught her by the wrist, pulling her back briefly. She watched him as he lifted her hand to his lips and kissed it.

"Later then, Princess," he said and bent his head downward in what could be considered the first real bow he'd presented since her arrival.

She smiled warmly before bringing her hand back to her side and exiting the room.

* * *

**Well that was a long one. I'd love to know how you thought this shaped up in comparison to the last chapter. That one, I thought, was someone trudging but I had some necessary ground to work through. This one had some character interactions that I was super excited to write! What did you think? **


	5. Chapter 5

She exited his rooms with her heart strangely aflutter. The last time her heart had skipped a beat just from having a boy kiss her hand was centuries ago when she was still but a child. She still remembered it.

It had been at an annual formal ball to celebrate the summer solstice. Every year they opened up the few rooms of the palace that had indoor fountains into which the ending tributaries of Mimir flowed on Vanaheim, all to celebrate the coming of the warm season when the typically icy river would flow again. Subsequently, all female royalty was born in the summer, so both her and of her sisters' birthdays were around the time of the annual ball.

There was always dancing and an annual toast to the Spring where, for that one time during the year, citizens could drink from the magical waters. Before the dancing and annual toast could begin though, the noble families always lined up to be formally presented to the royal family. It wasn't until many years later that Zinia was expected to say much but, one year, a young boy around her age had accompanied his parents and they'd been introduced. They'd both blushed furiously when he'd been prompted to kiss her hand and address her, and they didn't look at one another again for the whole evening.

She was shocked that she was feeling those same things again today, much less from a man that had been abjectly horrid to her since the beginning of her visit. Zinia tried her best to take everything in stride. This morning's conversation had been by far their most successful. She could only hope that it would stick.

Rounding the corner into the feasting hall, she finally found Thor catching a late breakfast with Sif, Volstagg, and Fandral.

"Princess! My friends have just told me of your admirable dueling skills," he said, calling her over. "I am sad I was not awake to participate."

"I'm not!" Zinia replied with a short bark of a laugh. "I had a hard enough time not resorting to magic against Sif, and I ultimately _failed_, they may have told you."

"They may have," Thor agreed. "But it sounds as if you were a formidable opponent before your final trick."

Zinia sat down amongst them, content the tale had been sufficiently relayed. She would have loved to at least try a battle against Thor. Maybe she would still have time.

"How much longer can we expect the pleasure of your company, dear cousin?" she asked, using the familiar term genuinely. Loki seemed too distant to even fully consider an ally, much less her cousin, adopted or not. But Thor had a familiar quality about him, perhaps from the fact that he was half Vanir. She had never met her Aunt Frigga, but Thor certainly looked the part of a Vanir warrior — all golden hair and brawn. The Vanir had a tendency to be blondes, though her sisters' complexions seemed to vary more than the average citizens.

"I leave tonight, after we dine, I'm afraid," he replied. "And I am truly sorry to be returning to Midgard so soon after meeting you. But I have work on Midgard now, good friends and battle-mates to support…"

"And your _great _love!" Volstagg joked, elbowing Thor hard in the side while Fandral laughed. A shadow of emotion crossed Sif's face just for a second before it disappeared and she sat stoically.

"But, my Princess, please do not hesitate to contact me if you plan to bring your progress to Midgard," he said, ignoring his friends. "The Midgardians are wonderful people, despite what my brother may tell you."

"Speaking of the new King," Zinia said, rising from her seat, "Would you mind walking with me privately for a bit? We may not have another chance to speak before you leave."

"Of course," he said and stood with her.

"I'll deliver your friend back shortly," she promised the remaining trio. "I wouldn't dare snatch up too much of his time before he leaves."

"Do not worry, Zinia," Sif said warmly. But Zinia could see Sif's eyes follow Thor as he began to lead her out into the hallway. Not wanting Sif to know she was aware of the poor girl's pining, she turned and went with him.

The walked a ways in silence, to get further from the throngs of people making their way through the halls to and from the late breakfast. More dishes still were making their way from the kitchen to the feasting hall. She smelled something distinctly like a roasted meat and she wondered if perhaps they were already moving on to lunch, the kitchens steadily churning out food during all hours of the day.

"As you know, I've spoken with Sif, not just about your friendly duel," Thor said once they were far enough down the hall to feel more secluded, "But before we talk about Loki I would like to more formally restate my invitation to Midgard."

"I had always planned to stop there on my progress, though I was unsure of with whom I should meet," she said.

"It is true that Midgard is incredibly divided. There is always a war being waged somewhere as they have no supreme ruler," he explained. "The military team I serve, SHIELD, protects the realm but does not presume to rule it."

She stayed quiet, content to let him explain the modern workings of the realm no one had heard from in centuries. They had no means of reaching out to the other Eight of Yggdrasil, without magic or sufficient technology. She had learned, though, that there technology was getting steadily better and better. Further, this SHIELD had begun to employ Midgardians of a magical variety, something that had rarely been seen before.

"Never the less, the only group of people who are even equipped to handle your arrival are the agents of SHIELD," Thor said. "If you are sure you will ultimately visit, I will notify them and prepare them. Without my aid, they may think you a hostile like Loki. He has left them… suspicious."

"Charming," Zinia said dryly. "But I appreciate the pains you would take on my behalf. And I do intend to visit Midgard. _Soon_, actually. I had hoped to go after I leave Asgard."

"And when will that be?" Thor asked.

Zinia shrugged dramatically. "Whenever your brother and I have forged some semblance of a working relationship," she said. "I still don't want to leave until I feel fully secure the alliance."

"You may have to," Thor said.

"I know," she replied simply. They didn't need to harp over Loki's stubbornness. They were both aware of it and knew it was their main obstacle.

"He has not always been like this, Zinia," he said. "He has not always been ruled by bitterness… jaded and suspicious of everything. I do sincerely hope he may be able to move far enough past his pain to return to his old self but I doubt you will be able to speed up the process."

"No one can fix another person. People have to help themselves," she agreed. "But do you think his pain affects his ability to rule?"

"I have always thought my brother would make a good ruler. He is startlingly smart and _can_ be incredibly diplomatic, though that may come as a shock to you."

Zinia laughed. They stopped at one of the many balconies that lined the halls. This one was just short of the platform where Thor had given his speech to the people of Asgard just the day before. They could see it to the left of them, a few windows away. No one was standing beneath them now aside from the occasional bustling tradesman walking around the outside of the palace.

"I do not think those things will affect his ability to rule Asgard. I don't think he had any plans to take over all of Yggdrasil, either… before your presence reminded him that it was a possibility," he said.

"And now?" she asked with brows raised in concern.

"I have no sure opinion to affirm or deny any suspicions," he said. "But I think we should all be keeping a close watch."

"I agree," she said. "But perhaps we will get lucky and just be miraculously presented with proof that he is a reformed man, just not a very nice one."

"Perhaps!" Thor agreed with a laugh. "I must speak with my brother myself before I leave this evening. If you need to speak with me again, don't hesitate to find me before I leave."

He turned to leave but clapped a large hand down on her shoulder, hard enough to almost make her knees buckle, before he walked away.

"I know that you will be fine with Loki," he said. "You may not secure the flourishing friendship you so desire for our realms, but I _know_ that you will not make anything worse. I feel certain the alliance is safe."

"Thank you, Thor. I needed a vote of confidence today," she said with a smile and he leaned down to give her as careful a hug as he could manage.

* * *

Loki did not care to be made to experience negative emotions, unless it was rage or righteous indignity. This feeling, this _guilt_, was her fault! There was something obnoxiously affable about her as well; he'd always detested good-doer attitudes before but it appeared her plans for good did not directly come into conflict with his plans. Yet. Yet, because he had always assumed it would just be a matter of time until he felt secure enough to cause some mischief again. Inevitably she'd step in if he took that mischief to too large a scale. That irritated him too; he didn't like the feeling of not being completely liberated.

He was mulling these emotions over while waving the cleaning servants away from the table and out of the room when his brother burst in, not even bothering to knock.

"_Thor!" _he growled at his brother in warning.

Thor didn't look abashed in the slightest but he didn't roll his eyes either, though Loki could tell he wanted to.

"Apologies, my _King_," he said emphatically as the servants left the room completely. "Really, brother, the door was already partially open."

"What is it Thor?" Loki asked, wearily, ultimately having given up on stopping Thor from calling him 'brother.'

"I plan to leave for Midgard this evening, after the evening meal. I wanted to speak with you before I left," he explained.

Loki was slumped wearily in one of the chairs at his oval table. He gestured for Thor to take a seat with him. His hand was propping up his head. Though Thor had taken her side several times in the days of his visit, Loki was feeling oddly abandoned at the idea of being forced to weather the remainder of her stay alone. Thor and his friends had been a good tool for keeping the Princess entertained while she was here, and he could monopolize his personal time for more important pursuits.

"Now if I can only get rid of that woman, I'll rest easily again," Loki commented dryly.

"Really, Loki, that _woman _as you so vulgarly chose to put it, is almost your Queen. And neither she nor I have displayed even a remote interest in assuming power over Asgard. Why do you so insist on making relations with Vanaheim difficult?" Thor asked.

Loki rolled his eyes. "You are too trusting brother. Why are we to suppose the Vanir are even _prepared _to regain control of Yggdrasil after all this time? Why am I the only one questioning the right of this _little girl _to rule us all?"

"She is no little girl, Loki. You would shame our mother with such belittling talk of a Vanir woman or _any _woman," Thor scolded. "Zinia worked with Odin. I trust her ability to rule just as I trusted his… for a time."

"For a time…" Loki repeated as if, somehow, that one admission proved everything.

"If you are really so worried, then you should take the time to speak with her diplomatically. She seeks you out as a trusted ally and friend. Asgard and Vanaheim have always consulted with one another politically and Zinia isn't blind to that legacy," Thor said. "She will trust your judgement when she is unsure of her own; she is not stubborn. And she would value your insight into any matter of governance."

"I highly doubt that, Thor," Loki dismissed. "It's as if we haven't even met the same high-strung woman." He knew he was blustering at this point. Thor's point of view wasn't out of line. And still he couldn't bring himself to act in any manner that would suggest an admission of fallibility.

"I think she is only high-strung because she has likely never been so rudely treated in her life as you have treated her here," Thor said. His voice was firm and Loki got the distinct feeling he was being lectured.

"You have given up any rights to this throne, Thor! Do not presume to lecture your King!" Loki hissed at him, rising from the table to pace back into his bedroom.

"I apologize if you found my council informal," Thor said, not sounding sorry at all. "As it appears that you would prefer to only hear your own thoughts, currently, I will take my leave and see you before dinner."

Loki heard the door click shut. Alone with his own thoughts, indeed. That's all he ever wanted.

* * *

Zinia had spent the rest of the day in genuine happiness on Asgard. Sif had set her up with a beautiful white stallion to take out to a river near the palace and the two had had lunch in the grass, surrounded by her ladies, sparring with one another again and again. They'd fought with the Vanir swords again; Sif really enjoyed the mobility their light weight provided. They'd also tried knife fighting, both equipped with long daggers and pacing just a foot away from one another. Then they'd tried shooting at one another from horseback, though Zinia tricked the arrows to merely mark a person's clothing with color if they'd been hit to be sure no one was accidentally wounded.

She was shocked to find how much she like Sif. It was nice to have a woman around to talk to again. Some of her sisters had become good friends with their handmaids but Zinia had never had much time to make friends outside her family while she studies to rule. Thus, despite being surrounded by ladies all day, her only confidants were her family. The ease with which she fell into a companionship with Sif was an unexpected, but wonderful, addition to her trip here.

Zinia had wanted to broach the topic of Thor, but she wasn't sure they knew each quite well enough for that yet. Thor had a lot of last minute appearances to make around the city since no one really knew when he could be back again. Sif could have chosen to follow him around a bit but Zinia didn't perceive her as a literal dogged type. And so, they spent the day together and by the time the sky was morphing into a sunset purple, they both rode back to the palace to change before dinner.

She was sweating like a pig from all the fighting and desperately wanted to wash off before the feast. But in her rush to get to her chambers, she was still stopped short by the sight of a completely empty library.

Where were Loki's scholars? She had been told they were required to work well into the evening. Had they finished or had he called them off? She silently begged for the latter… that would be a positive signal that he was willing to work with her now. But, as she continued on towards her chambers, she also doubted it would be the case.

That evening, she dressed in her mother's colors. Iluti always wore white and gold. Zinia chose an extraordinarily long, white, vertically pleated tunic. The top half of the gown was embroidered in gold filament, secured in a halter around her neck, made from malleable gold plates and fashioned to look like a thin choker.

Upon arriving to the spread with her ladies and Shadowcat, she could see that her bath had made her late. Sif was already there, looking overjoyed to be lead around the ballroom floor in a rousing waltz with Thor. At the head of the table, watching the dancers, and looking put-out as always, Loki sat with his head resting on a hand. His sour mood did not stop Zinia from striding over and sitting right next to him. The chair was unoccupied and across from what appeared to be Thor's plate, stacked almost as high with food as Volstagg's. Volstagg and Fandral were both engaged in some sort of debate but greeted her with a friendly nod as she began to pile some roast beef on her own plate.

"Good evening, Loki. I apologize for my tardiness," she said pleasantly before a waiter appeared at her side to ladle some gravy onto her plate.

"It's fine, Princess," he replied lazily, barely making eye contact.

She wanted to roll her eyes. The mood swings were back and they were not welcome.

"I couldn't help but notice this afternoon," she pressed, "The library was empty."

He sneered down at her, now giving her his full, unpleasant gaze. "They didn't find anything. You _knew _they wouldn't," he said.

"I did know that," she agreed. "I've been saying so from the beginning. I just wanted-"

"You just wanted to see if I would _grovel_?"

"No! _I-_"

"My Princess?" It was Fandral. Zinia looked over to him gratefully. "I am so sorry to interrupt your Majesties, but I could not hold myself back _any_ longer. I must implore you to dance with me. You look so elegant tonight."

Zinia didn't know if he was purposefully saving her or just being Fandral. Either way, she was grateful.

"Of course, Fandral! I would love to!" she exclaimed. "No one has invited me to dance since I've arrived!"

_Not even on my birthday_, she thought and threw a pointed look in Loki's direction. He narrowed his eyes in return. What, was it his responsibility to dance with visiting Vanir princesses now? In some small way, he was able to acknowledge that, yes, the King of Asgard should probably invite the impending Queen of Vanaheim to dance. That would be diplomatic. It would also hearten the spirits of the Asgardian people. But Loki had never been a man to do anything to make _other _people happy.

"That dress is stunning on you," Fandral drawled as they began to dance. Sif and Thor were just heading _off _the floor and Sif threw her look that suggested she wanted to laugh at Zinia's predicament.

"Thank you, this is my mother's preferred style of dress," she said. There. That was foolproof. Bringing up one's mother always did the trick.

"Is she as beautiful as her daughter?" he asked her.

Zinia wrinkled her nose. That was the exact last thing she would have expected him to say in that situation. Maybe other women weren't off-put about comparisons to their mother but it wasn't exactly Zinia's favorite form of compliment, as much as she did respect Iluti.

Whirling her around, she came to be facing the direction of their feasting table where Loki was very noticeably watching. Outright staring. Or glaring. She wasn't quite sure.

_Fandral is a complete oaf_, was all he could seem to think. Just _look_ at how he was holding her. Zinia looked the tiniest bit uncomfortable but it was barely discernible. He was oddly thrilled by the fact she was unhappy, though. As they weaved through the crowd, he could see Fandral talking to her. What inane things was the poor girl listening to? He saw the tiniest flex in Fandral's hand on her waist and something in him just cracked.

"If you're interested," Fandral continued as she woke herself up to pay attention to her partner, "I could take you out to see the hunting grounds tomorrow."

Zinia did not know how to respond to his forwardness. Did he mean go out _alone_? Just as she was about to excuse herself from the dance, an imposing figure stepped up to them.

"Excuse me, Fandral, I must cut in now," he demanded.

Fandral bowed with a surly impression on his face and excused himself with a curt nod to her. Zinia stared after him, somewhat dumbfounded in how easily she'd evaded his offer. Not missing a beat, though, Loki immediately had his hand in hers and another appropriately placed on her waist and he was leading her smoothly across the floor. First saved from Loki by Fandral, then saved from Fandral by Loki. It was enough to make her head spin in aggravation.

He did not say anything right away, a nice contrast to Fandral's never ending flirtations.

Finally, she began, "Thank you for that. Fandral is exceedingly nice," she said, "But I'm afraid we don't have much in common."

"Exceedingly?" he asked quirking an eyebrow. "You seemed about to bite his head off."

"Maybe I would have," she suddenly considered in a serious tone, "He invited me to see the hunting grounds tomorrow."

Loki narrowed his eyes, "I would not recommend that you accompany him anywhere alone." His tone was stiff and she laughed.

He genuinely tensed at how fond he found himself of the sound. And suddenly he became acutely aware of her small hand in his, the smell of lavender and honey, and how soft her skin was. The suspicion and resentment returned, right on cue. He wouldn't fall for her little temptress act.

"I'll take that into consideration, though I'm sure I could handle him," she said. "I bested him this morning sparring."

"You were fighting with him this morning?" Loki asked, actually curious.

"And Sif and Volstagg," she said. "I had to use magic with Sif."

"Oh? Have I missed the opportunity to witness the famous Vanir Light Magic once again?" he asked in mock disappointment.

"I'm sure I can think of something right now, if you'd like," she said with a smile. "Not snakes, nothing to scare your guests."

Zinia lowered her eyelids in a slow, easy blink. Allowing relaxation to warm her from head to toe, she sighed out contentedly. Around them, the air began to dust over with the pale, pink leaves of cherry blossoms falling from the ceiling around them on the dance floor. The other dancers began to gasp and laugh, pausing in the music to hold out their hands and catch the petals that were quickly gathering in a soft pink carpet on the dance floor.

She looked at Loki who was staring up at the ceiling in complete bewilderment. He hadn't seen magic used in such a way in a _long _time… since he was a child and Frigga would use her magic and nature together to entertain them. Loki had certainly never embraced such types of magic himself; now he wasn't even sure he _could_ knowing he was Jotun. He couldn't honestly even fathom the purpose of such magic.

But next to him, Zinia was smiling up at the ceiling as the dusty-rose colored petals fell on her cheeks. She was slowing their torrent down to nothing now, lest they all find themselves knee deep in flowers. She looked over to Loki who was still staring her down, his expression unreadable. The music had stopped; the band was taking a break to clean the petals out of their instruments.

"Thank you for the dance," she said.

"You're welcome," he replied and stretched out an arm to accompany her back to the table.

The moment their skin touched, they were sucked back into the sensation they'd felt the previous evening. It was like they'd switched bodies but continued to inhabit their own at the same time. It felt warm and comfortable, and the sensation began to build in their cores like steadily crashing waves.

Loki wrenched his arm away and Zinia stepped back as well. No one around them appeared to have noticed anything, but they continued to stare at each other awhile longer. She tried not to let her breathlessness show. He didn't take her hand again when he made his way back to the table but she trailed behind him just a moment later. Zinia was perturbed the sensation had manifested itself in his touch even without the aid of Dark Magic. But it didn't happen every time they touched. Was just the interaction of magic between them enough?

Loki meanwhile, sat at the table mulling over the most subtle sensation he'd experienced during the event. He'd felt the distinct, and familiar, sensation of _power_.

* * *

Only a few sojourned after Thor towards the Bifrost when he left dinner. Loki was not one of them, content to wave Thor off. Zinia could tell he was at least somewhat hurt but also expectant.

Sif put up a brave face but Zinia could sense her unrest. Fandral and Volstagg were jovial beside them and Thor kept reiterating invitations for all of them to come visit Earth. He was _sure_ some man named Tony and his sweetheart Jane had devised a way to have it transport them to Stark Tower in New York and not the middle of some place called New Mexico. Frankly, both destinations sounded equally remote to Zinia but she didn't comment this when she hugged him goodbye.

She bade her ladies leave her a moment so she could respite with a private walk through the halls after that. She'd had a wonderful time at dinner, as usual, with Thor and his friends, despite Fandral continuing to push his limit. He _was_ cute anyway, despite being overly familiar and clueless. Thor's departure seemed the perfect excuse for her own and thus from any further dancing. She didn't want to imagine who would ask her next.

Someone moved quickly beside her from the shadows. Sensing them in her periphery, her hand moved to her blade as she whirled around.

It was Loki. He eyed her blade warily but ultimately pressed ahead to fall into step beside her. She put the blade back and noticed a group of guards congregating several long paces behind them.

"I am sorry if I surprised you," he said with a laugh suggesting that her reaction was overly-paranoid.

She didn't answer him, thinking her self-preservation in a somewhat hostile environment wasn't strange at all. She refused to be belittled.

"You must be a very good actress," he said to her, alternately staring straight ahead and down to her.

"How's that?" she asked through gritted teeth.

"You really seem to enjoy their company. Sif… _Fandral_," he said.

"I _do _enjoy their company. Why would I have to _act_?" she spat at him.

He looked momentarily surprised at her angry outburst but masked the emotion quickly. She stopped walking to look at him.

"But _you _don't even bother to act. You just hate everyone because you don't trust anyone to actually just _like _you or have benign political interests because you're so sure everyone is out to take advantage of you!" she railed, "Not everyone is _you_, Loki!"

He was boiling over with rage at this woman's insolence. Queen or not, she had _no_ right to speak to him like that. But suddenly, she seemed to calm herself and he did in turn. He didn't want to seem the less even tempered of the two. The guards behind them were already beginning to notice.

"Why must each consecutive interaction we hold seemingly deserve more derision than the last?" she asked in as bland a tone as she could muster. "I suppose the consistency is refreshing, at least."

"I have always considered myself stalwart," he said.

"_You_ would be able to turn anything into a compliment, while never having given one, I'm sure," she said with a barely concealed agitated frown.

"Oh, I can give compliments," he assured in a placating tone, "Haven't you heard, they call me Silvertongue?"

"I _have _heard that," she conceded, warily. "But again, I feel you've proven my point and managed to redirect the topic of conversation to yourself."

"The men on Vanaheim must _adore _you. Men do so enjoy being verbally whipped at every encounter," he spat back at her.

Zinia narrowed her eyes and chose not to answer this. She had had dalliances with men but, with the most actively political role amongst her sisters, she wasn't exactly considered suitably experienced for 1050 years old. Training to rule Nine Realms turned out to be time consuming, who knew? It was commonly joked amongst her sisters that their youngest, Anu, had probably slept with twice as many people.

Either way, it was out of line for him to be so bold, King of Asgard or not.

"I urge you to take care with your speech, Loki," she said.

"Why? So I don't anger _you? _You're the one so cautious of me; isn't that why you're still here?" he asked, leaning in closely to whisper the last bit in her ear.

She stopped walking. He halting abruptly beside her a sick smile of success creeping onto his features. She waved the guards off but Shadowcat remained, standing next to her, a soft growl in his throat. Loki glowered down at him.

Zinia was shocked at her rancor. After being completely honest and forthright, even sharing childhood memories, with him this morning, he was now mocking her. She felt like she had been slapped.

"Do you wish me gone so intently?" she leveled at him, "Are you _really _that threatened I am a challenge to your reign on Asgard?"

He didn't answer her choosing to look down at her circumspectly, as always, instead. She was considerably worked up and he noticed the tips of her hair beginning to whiten. Mostly he was just interested to see how this would play out now. She didn't honestly think she could hurt him, did she?

"Or are you not content with Asgard yourself? Are _you_ after all of Yggdrasil?" she was starting to sound paranoid now but, her fears felt grounded.

The truth was, Loki honestly didn't know how to answer that question. He'd mostly just planned to dedicate his energies to perpetuating the Odin-ruse for as long as possible. But after that? He hadn't dared to let his thoughts drift further, feeling somewhat superstitious of taunting the Fates. But, luckily, he was the God of Lies, so none of that affected his decision to placate the dark energy radiating from her. She was completely alabaster skinned now. He'd only seen a transformation of that extent in himself, he momentarily realized, before stifling the thought.

"Princess, of course I'm not," he said, holding up his hands in a faux defensive position. "I think you might want to focus your energy on a little self-awareness right now, anyway."

Zinia looked down at her hands and flinched. The dullest of pink blushes graced her cheeks but otherwise her dark form held.

"You _knew _you were pushing me to this. You had to know this would happen to me!" she insisted.

He shrugged, inching close to her and genuinely curious as to how her skin might feel. She was angry right now though. He decided against finding out.

"I have no knowledge of your… _resolve_," he said after a moment trying to find a word that didn't sound insulting, "Other than you haven't had a problem since you were a child. Suffice it to say I thought your… _tolerance?... _was a bit higher."

She must have noticed the care he was taking with his words because her coloring was finally returning to normal, albeit slowly.

"I thought so as well," she admitted. "Either way, I think you're right that I've reached the conclusion of my visit."

Loki's brow furrowed. He didn't remember suggesting she leave; he'd merely _baited _her for remaining, right?

"I will make arrangements to return to Vanaheim tomorrow morning and plan the next leg of my progress through Yggdrasil," she said.

"And the allyship between our two realms?" he asked.

"I suppose we'll both have to trust each other. It wouldn't be in either of our interests to start an unnecessary war and, really, no one ever said allies had to be friends. Perhaps it's better if we're not," she considered.

He just stood and stared at her, hard. He did not know what he had expected but certainly not this. She had completely disarmed him and he realized she was smarter than he'd initially given her credit for. He still surmised this was a bluff, her attempt to get him to invite her to stay, but it was impressive none the less.

But he wouldn't be tricked into begging her to stay. And he did want her gone, really. Things had only gotten more complicated since her arrival. He never cared to have his carefully crafted plans disrupted.

"If you think that's best," he said, cautiously.

She nodded decisively. "Thank you for your hospitality. I suppose I won't see you until my coronation ceremony. You will come?" she asked.

He wanted to punch himself when his breath momentarily hitched at the idea that she wanted him to be there. Then he realized it was more important to keep up appearances that the friendship between realms was strong.

"Of course," he said.

"Then I'll be going to pack," she said, simply, "Goodnight."

"Goodnight." He almost hissed at himself when it practically came out as a question. If she noticed, she did not acknowledge it as her back retreated down the hall.

If she was still bluffing… he really didn't think she was.

* * *

**That chapter took awhile to get out because I worked a really long time on it! This plot is taking a decidedly different turn than my original and I don't want to mess up with too many less ends, or rushed character interactions this time. I'd appreciate your thoughts! Also, the extra time helped me to map out the next chapter a lot better so that one is almost done. I can sincerely promise that the more reviews I get on this one will lead me to publish the next one faster! ;) **


	6. Chapter 6

Once in Vanaheim, she had wanted nothing more than to return home straight to cry. But, as she was less than a month from her coronation now, she didn't feel such displays would be considered appropriate anymore.

He'd been there to see her off that morning, leaving instructions for Heimdall that the gate was always open for her, as if it _hadn't_ been already. Zinia ignored this though. She hadn't bothered to wonder if he might ask her to reconsider and stay but it was all _Loki_ could seem to think about. He stared at her — she was _really_ packed, _really _leaving.

And as much as he wanted her leaving to be a good thing, he couldn't get past the feeling that he was stuck in a never-ending game of hawk-dove and neither one of them was prepared to yield first.

Sif, Volstagg, and Fandral were there as well. Volstagg bowed low and told her he hoped to be able to wish her well on her coronation day, which was just about the _most_ appropriate thing anyone had said to her since she had arrived.

"My lady, I must beg of you before you leave," Fandral had said, grasping both of her hands, "To please leave me your favor, that I might wear into battle and think of my _Queen_ when I serve the Nine Realms."

Next to them, Loki didn't even bother to tone down his sigh of annoyance. Fandral looked a touch embarrassed at the sound but Zinia wasn't about to indulge the poor man either way.

"It would just be a token of courtly love!" he had insisted upon hearing her negation.

"I do not… participate in courtly love, sadly," she replied, and Loki had snickered obnoxiously. She narrowed her eyes, more glad than ever that she was leaving… until Sif pulled her into a hug.

"I will admit I'm sad to see you leave so soon," Sif said.

"I am sure that we will meet many times again, not just at my coronation," she replied.

When she'd turned to Loki one final time he didn't say anything, instead staring her down for a long, uncomfortable while. He certainly didn't flinch in the face of an awkward moment, she could give him that much.

Finally she gave in, nodded to him, and she'd left. And she'd felt awful about all of it. But instead of crying, she'd sat down with her parents to talk over the meeting with Asgard. She did her best to hide the thickening of her throat as she relayed the information.

"Thor is content to let his brother rule," she informed them incredulously, "And Loki is officially coronated."

She'd already briefed them on Odin's remaining in Odinsleep. They too, were not overly concerned with the goings-on of Asgard's leadership, so long as it remained a steadfast ally. But their faces grew more and more concerned as she told them of her interactions with Loki.

"I fear we may never feel secure about Asgard with Loki in power, though he insisted before I left that he was not interested in pursuing to take over all Nine Realms," she said.

"Not may. You won't _ever_ feel secure," her mother, Iluti, cautioned. "I wouldn't take his vow against pursuing Yggdrasil at face value."

"I don't," Zinia said with a sigh, "Not for a second. I was just so _sure_ I could get him on our side by the end of my trip. I've never felt so _beaten_ before."

"That's because you've never _been_ beaten before, daughter," her father, Deus, said softly, "This is an important lesson for you. Take it with hope."

"Thank you," she said, reaching out for his hand across the table, more inclined to cry because of his tenderness over anything else.

"So, what do you plan to do next?" her mother asked.

"Go to Midgard, I think," she said. "I don't think I will have a reason to see Loki again until our realms are in need of one another. It will test the strength of the alliance while I'm blind to his true intentions, but I don't have any other choice."

"For the time being I agree. But if a suitable chance arises for you to need his consultation, to at the very least further your familiarity with him, I will be sure to draw your attention to the opportunity," Iluti said.

"Of course," she said.

* * *

When she'd left, Loki had mustered up his energy to teleport from the bridge to his room in the palace where he promptly sent every book in his room flying from their shelves. He was even more outraged that he couldn't entirely understand the source of his own anger.

He really hadn't expected her to leave and he couldn't tell if he respected her for not wasting anyone's time or if he loathed her for giving up. Unclearer still, was this lingering feeling that he was attracted to her. He liked to think that if he _hadn't _seen her dark side, he would have been content to hate her, free from complication. As it was, when imaging her in her light form, she was still often dead. Accidentally speared by Fandral or Sif while they were sparring… Falling off the Bifrost…

Well, he hadn't thought anything like that for a while, really. Loki groaned. For once he was coming to a singular conclusion. Thor may have been right in their earlier conversation. He still had his concerns and suspicions but it wasn't doing anyone any good to chase her away completely so he couldn't even examine those things further. He had wanted to prove to everyone that he was a capable ruler, above all else. Currently he was failing.

He needed to get a message to Zinia on Vanaheim, but he hadn't a clue of the best way to say it or how to go about it. He needed — Hel this was _unbelievable _— help. Zinia, because she generally seemed to be a thoughtful and sociable person — _there_ was his hatred again; thoughtful and sociable people were the worst! — had made friends while she was here. Loki thought it time he sought them out.

* * *

One of Mimir's many advantages over the Bifrost was that it was also a means of communication between realms, if you could control dark magic anyway. It wasn't meant to be used frequently but, currently, this was Zinia's best bet for letting Thor know that she would be arriving imminently.

Zinia walked into one of the basin rooms of the palace where Mimir flowed. Torrential fountains of water poured out at the corners of the massive room from the towering domed ceiling that seemed to disappear to nothing above them. The water from the fountains collected into a large indoor marble wading and wishing pool replete with sturdy fish and crustaceans that could withstand the cold. Excess water flowed into drains that lead to waterfalls outside the palace walls which opened onto Vanaheim's rocky cliffs.

This is where anyone would arrive or depart from Vanaheim aside from the Aesir who could use the Bifrost or other magical beings that had their own means. Perhaps, one day, Midgardian technology would be sophisticated enough to bring them here without Mimir's assistance.

Today, though, Zinia just needed to… well, literally stick her face in. She'd never used Mimir to speak with anyone. There was no one to contact. Her mother had used it to speak to Odin and Frigga, but Iluti had just assured Zinia she'd figure it out. Zinia had wrangled a few specifics from her elusive mother, though. First, she needed to summon her dark form… and that was difficult. Her first instinct was to try to think of Loki but it turned out she apparently needed the _real thing_. Finally, she just began to worry. Worry about what to do next. And suddenly, it was like the emotion reeled _her _in, and she was awash in a light chill.

Sure enough, her hands were white. She passed one of them over the water, concentrating hard on Thor and Midgard. When a small whirlpool began to form beneath her, she instinctively held her breath and pushed her face into the pool while she knelt next to it. She needn't have, as she could breathe unimpeded. She felt like she was looking through a window. A steamy window.

She saw a torso. It was naked.

"Excuse me?" Zinia interrupted, politely. "Is that you Thor?"

A woman shrieked and the torso shuffled around with another, smaller person before backing up. Now Zinia could see Thor's face; he was shielding a naked woman and they were both wet. Their hair was dripping steadily.

"Princess? What are you doing in the steam?" Thor asked her.

"Is that where I am? Here I'm just using Mimir! I'm sorry to intrude-"

"Who _are _you?" the woman demanded.

"Oh, I _am _sorry. I had no idea this is how it would work-"

"This is Princess Zinia," Thor interrupted. "The one who summoned-"

"Oh okay, um well as lovely it would be to speak with you, I think I'm going to hop out… you'll be _joining me, _right?" the woman Zinia had surmised was Jane said. Thor shot her an apologetic look which Jane responded to with a terrifying glare. All the same she was apparently anxious to be out and safely covered as she still left. Thor swallowed uncomfortably but turned back to Zinia.

"Yes Princess?" he asked.

"Loki has goaded me into leaving Asgard. We have set a _very _loose truce. Before I can revisit that issue, I thought I'd take my progress to Midgard," she explained.

"Yes, I shall host you!" Thor said, "Or perhaps Tony Stark, as his lodgings are best suited for a Queen."

"I am sure anything will suffice, but thank you. Do you have a way to receive me? I am back in Vanaheim so I will be traveling by Mimir," she said.

"I am sure either SHIELD or our good friend Tony will," Thot said. "Just be set to leave tomorrow morning."

"It is set then. Thank you for being so amenable, cousin," she said, fondly.

It was genuine. Thor was a refreshing change from the petulance of Loki.

* * *

Sif found Fandral being emotionally berated to the point of _actual _tears by their King. She hadn't been on her way to the throne room, but passing near it, it was impossible _not _to hear the shouting and the sniveling and be curious. The doors were wide open and the guards surrounding it all looked highly uncomfortable.

"Do not _lie_ to me!" Loki was shouting with his scepter held closely to Fandral's throat. "Where did she say she would be going?"

"I do not know, Lok- _Your Majesty_," Fandral would hiss back. "I would _assume _Vanaheim!"

Okay so perhaps he wasn't quite at the point of crying, but he did look upset and worried. The guards made a motion to stop her but she dashed in quickly. They followed and had her on her knees, spears surrounding her, in seconds. But Loki looked up.

"You Majesty… the door was open-"

_Was that _everyone's _excuse these days? _Loki wondered.

Sif felt torn. She _knew _where Zinia had gone and she wanted to bail Fandral out, but what if Zinia didn't want Loki to know where she was? She couldn't betray Zinia.

Unfortunately, she didn't have a say. As Loki began to narrow his eyes and assess her suspiciously.

"_You_ know, don't you?" he asked.

"I do not, I did not presume to become that intimate with the princess," Sif lied.

"You embraced when she departed. Do not lie to _me!_" he said, screaming at the end.

She couldn't hide her flinch and she hated the sick smirk that came over his face when he saw it. She felt trapped. Zinia would understand.

"She's going to Midgard next. Thor all but insisted on it," she admitted.

_Midgard_. He waved his hand, releasing the guards from their poised posture in threat to Sif before whirling around in a huff himself. His eyes flashed over the still kneeling Fandral and was disturbed to see the man quickly making his face blank. He could've sworn he briefly saw an emotion he detested seeing on anyone but himself: _triumph_. Loki knew where he needed to go now... but there was no way he'd be well received.

* * *

Thor had moments where he seemingly never stopped talking about Midgard; Zinia, though an astute listener, didn't feel any more prepared in knowing how to dress for her trip. From what she could remember about his tales, she'd hazard the only time they probably really dressed formally was for battle. She wrinkled in her nose at the thought; it seemed patently absurd. What about important introductions or dinners?

She desperately needed to find something appropriate for her arrival on Midgard. She'd spent hours the previous day dragging everything from her wardrobe with her sisters. Well, five of her six sisters anyway. The youngest, Anu, was absent as usual.

Ever since the incident that had brought out Zinia's dark magic so many years ago, the two had seemed destined for a sour relationship. Unique to Anu's situation as the youngest in the family, too, was the least responsibility. It was a stark contrast to Zinia's regimented upbringing, preparing to inherit nine worlds. They wouldn't have had much time to spend together anyway; Zinia's other sisters saw her frequently at political meetings but Anu had developed a whole life outside the palace with nothing formal calling away her attention.

Nanshe, second closest in age to Zinia, explained that Anu was likely off with a boy outside the palace. Apparently she had decided that she would never marry. Why should she have to with six other sisters occupied for the realm and providing heirs? Anu's righteousness and rebelliousness had been solely her parents problem for a very long time, but Zinia was about to inherit it along with everything else, once coronated.

In the meantime, though, she had more important things to think about. And before the discussion about clothes came the discussion about _boys_. It was common practice for Vanir women to wed Asgardian men and, though Zinia still had her coronation to think of well ahead of potential husbands, that didn't mean her sisters were above speculating suitable matches for themselves.

"So you met Thor?" Kia gushed. Tales of Thor's bravery in battle, and his good looks moreover, had not escaped any corner of Yggdrasil. Though the women had seen flashes of their cousin through their visions, no one but Zinia and her parents had met him personally.

"He is our cousin, sister," Zinia reminded her patiently, knowing full well that such a relation was still considered suitably distant for royal marriage. "Besides, I believe he is all but betrothed to a Midgardian woman."

"So?" Essure asked, "Let him have his fun with the Midgardian. Children even! Her life will end in just a flash of our own. He'll need to move on eventually."

"You all are _horrid_," Zinia said with narrowed eyes, trying hard not to laugh. She knew her sisters well enough to know they were enjoying being vulgar more than actively speculating. Who knew what Thor would do when his love Jane had passed? It certainly wasn't up to her sisters to find out, though.

"But surely you must have met _other _men?" Enir, Essure's twin, asked.

Zinia sighed with an exaggerated eye roll and turned her back to her closet before plopping herself down onto a large pillow. At this gesture, her sisters crowded around.

"Well there was Volstagg…"

Enir wrinkled her nose in disgust. "No Zinia, we've heard of Volstagg!"

"Alright, then Fandral?" she asked, smiling when her audience's eyes lit up.

"Yes! Tell us about Fandral!" Kia said.

"Well, he seemed to attempt to maintain an air of respect with me, but he _was _bold. He was constantly trying to get me alone, whether for a dance or out to hunt-"

"And _did _he?" Tiamat asked with a knowing lewd tone.

"Just for a dance. He asked me to give him a favor at my departure, but I declined."

"But what did he _look _like?" Essure asked.

"Tall and blonde. Piercing blue eyes, a dashing pointed beard. The only thing unappealing about him are the throngs of women constantly thrown about him at any given moment. I don't know how he imagines to successfully _woo_ a woman of higher birth rank with painted whor-"

"Alright, so you didn't care for Fandral," a smooth voice drawled from her bedroom door. Zinia and the others looked up, surprised to see Anu leaning in the doorframe. "Tell us about _the King_," she finished with a wicked smirk.

Zinia couldn't hide the blush that immediately crept across her features, startling ever herself with its presence. Luckily, her sisters were now facing away from her so only Anu noticed and her eyes flashed with a sort of mean delight. The Vanir sisters had always grouped themselves by which parent they favored. Those that resembled the goddess Iluti — Enir, Nanshe, Tiamat, and Zinia herself — had classic Vanir tanned skin and long golden hair that sometimes morphed into a blonde-white as luminous as light, depending on how sour their mood was at the time. The others — Kia and Enir's twin Essure — had favored their father Deus, the former Midgardian whom Iluti had fallen so deeply in love with that she'd travelled the cosmos in search of a way to immortalize him. Deus had given Kia and Essure their fair skin and dark brunette hair that could morph into an inky black when upset.

Anu was the only one of the seven who seemed out of place. At first glance, she was as blonde as Iluti. But upon closer inspection, some strawberry locks would reveal themselves and there had been times — albeit extremely rare — when Anu's negative emotions had almost turned her into a full blown red-head. Beyond that, there were other features that didn't fit. Whether they favored Iluti or Deus aside, each of the sisters was tall and statuesque. Anu was by far the shortest, almost slight in comparison. There had been rumors throughout the centuries that Deus was not Anu's real father… that Iluti had had an illicit affair. But, no one had given them much credibility.

"The King?" Zinia asked, trying her hardest not to stammer. "Well I trust if you wanted to know about _him_, you could have been present for the briefing mother prepared for all of you this morning-"

"-I don't care to know the political aspects, _obviously_," Anu huffed, inspecting her fingernails casually. "I _thought _we were indulging in some rare boy talk. What does he look like?"

Zinia swallowed, hard, trying to dislodge the lump that had suddenly formed in her throat. Her sisters were looking down at her softly, all except Anu who continued to look pleased-as-punch from across the room.

"The Kind of Asgard-" she began before stopping to correct herself, "_Loki_ is, as you know, of Jotun heritage. And though he keeps his Aesir coloring masked on at all times, you _know_ he is Jotun because he is so tall."

The sisters around her were waiting, attentively and more curious than they had been before in their conversations about Asgard. Even Anu had dropped her malicious smirk to maintain steadfast attention.

"He doesn't look _anything_ like any of the other men on Asgard or the men here," she said. "He isn't brawny like Thor but he certainly doesn't seem weak. He is just…"

"_Chiseled?" _Essure suggested. Of course they would know; they had seen him in visions. What new insight they were possibly hoping for, Zinia couldn't imagine.

"I suppose that's one word for it," Zinia admitted softly, becoming intensely fixated on her hands in her lap. "He's dark. That's really what stand out the most, I suppose. He had dark hair, dark eyes… a dark aura."

Zinia looked up from her hands. Anu, apparently already bored, had left and was no longer standing in the doorway.

"Now," Zinia said abruptly, "Enough of that. I leave soon and I am no closer to finding my arrival outfit!"

Her closest sister in age, Tiamat, had firmly argued in favor of theatrical costumage, something to scare the Midgardians into worshipping them again. Knowing what she did about the Avengers, Zinia doubted this would go over well. Plus, Tiamat had a penchant for drama that Zinia rarely did. Just because her sister preferred to walk around all hours of the day dusted in gold didn't require Zinia to follow suit. In fact, she strongly suspected Tiamat's fashion choices were rooted in insecurity about being next in line to the throne should anything happen to Zinia. So, deciding to be cautious, she toned down her attire and wore a plain cream dress with a simple draped single-chain crown.

* * *

All in all, it had been lovely to see everyone in her family again, even Anu. Tiamat was disappointed with the ultimate plain dress selection but didn't go on about it. The next day, her sisters had accompanied her to Mimir. Everyone looked very misty-eyed. With Shadowcat at her side — who took to the water as well as any tiger — she bid her family goodbye, summoned her dark magic, and let the waters of Mimir rise around her.

The rush of water around her slowed until she stopped and was able to stand from a kneeling position. She appeared to be inside a giant white ceramic bowl of some sort. Beneath her, a drain was clearing the dregs of Mimir that had splashed her down but not quickly enough, the train of her dress was damp.

"Princess!"

Zinia looked up and smiled broadly. Standing outside the giant ceramic container with a drain, was Thor, surrounded by a gaggle of apparent Midgardians and… _Loki_.

Her eyes couldn't _not _be drawn to him instantaneously and she realized, with a start, that she was outright gaping at him. He was dressed like a Midgardian but _better_. She couldn't fully describe why, knowing nothing about current Midgardian clothing, but he was clearly more put together. The men present, including Thor, were all wearing pants made some kind of stiff looking blue material that looked appropriate for hard labor. Loki, on the other hand was wearing noticeably nicer fabric, tailored perfectly, and cut crisply — sharp black pants and a casual emerald dress shirt. She couldn't help but acknowledge that he looked _good _and that she felt like a wretch with the hem of her dress soaking up water.

"Majesty, welcome," he said, inclining his head towards her, eyes not leaving her own for a second, and motioning for her to follow the incline of the basin to some stairs. He looked noticeably bemused and she was well aware of the fact that, this time, he was the one with the upper hand.

She didn't remove her eyes from his either as she made her way over. He was smirking. _What was he doing here? _

"Whoa, Thor, way to prepare us," said a shorter man with black hair and a goatee, "You didn't tell us she was gonna be such a babe!"

Zinia broke her piercing glare at Loki to look around. That comment sounded vaguely insulting. "I see no infants here," she commented, confused, but no one responded. Both brothers reached out a hand to help her up the stairs and she very purposefully accepted Thor's.

"I am sorry we were forced to receive you without ceremony," Thor began, "The Man of Iron offered to drain his pool when I explained your method of travel."

Zinia looked back at the basin from which she'd just arisen. They had bathing pools on Vanaheim. None of them looked as drab as this.

"The Man of Iron…" she began. The goateed man _whistled _at her.

"That'd be me," he said when she turned her head.

"The brilliant Tony Stark, thank you for ensuring my arrival," she said as cordially as possible, given that he'd just whistled at her like a dog. She held out her hand at which he made a point of standing up straight, grabbing her hand tightly, and staring her down.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute…" Tony said as Shadowcat began to follow her up the stairs. He made a point of taking a large step back. "What is this? No one said anything about _pets._"

"_He _is Shadowcat," Zinia responded firmly. "He is my comrade in battle. He accompanies me _everywhere_."

"Well is _he _trained?" Tony asked, in an equally firm tone.

Zinia resisted the urge to roll her eyes. He spoke as if Shadow were some sort of ignorant brute rather than a majestic animal. "You have my every assurance," she said.

Tony held up his hands in acceptance. "Then we're good!"

Thor proceeded to introduce her to his "comrades," the Avengers, who she'd come to indirectly know from the host of seer visions she'd be subjected to during Loki's attempted take-over. _Speaking of which_, how was he here? _Why _was he here? _Why were all the Midgardians _not _killing him? _

Thor's bubbly enthusiasm did not transfer to anyone else. The other Avengers seemed to be dividing their time between being suspicious of Zinia and then of Loki. Zinia desperately wanted to make a good impression, but couldn't help but be suspicious of Loki herself. She kept tossing glances his way between shaking hands first with a man named Clint — or the Hawk? — and a woman named Natasha, who apparently fancied symbolism of spiders.

Most polite, and apparently genuinely friendly, were Dr. Banner and Steve Rogers. Thor took great pains to summarize Dr. Banner's affliction but Zinia stopped him to explain she already knew after seeing the discomfort flash across Bruce's features at the start of the conversation. The Captain was particularly courteous and unfalteringly respectful, even though she could sense his unease over her purported place of power. But if he was going to say anything, apparently he planned to save it for another time. As friendly as they were compared to the others, though, even Bruce and Steve would exchange furtive glances whenever they thought she wasn't looking. And throughout it all, Loki continued to grin to himself, everything apparently going perfectly according to his own plans.

For the time being, she was now making an effort to avoid his eye, lest he mess up her first impression with the Midgardians. At least her dress was drying.

Eventually they made their way from Tony's indoor "pool" room and, after a short ride in a tiny electronic capsule that sent them several stories higher — while Banner opted to take the stairs alongside Shadowcat, who'd taken an instant shine to the Hulk — they were now lounging in the room Tony referred to as his penthouse.

They'd taken two groups in the elevators going up and Loki had made sure to be in hers. The Black Widow and Thor were also with them. Natasha had curtly answered Zinia's question about the presence of Nick Fury; apparently, his whereabouts had been unknown for some time, he often took to hiding since the dissolution of their agency SHIELD. Zinia planned to return to talking to the agent about SHIELD and its activities, but she wasn't about to lose a second to engage Loki either.

He had decided to stand immediately behind her on the elevator, rather close, outright encroaching on her personal space. Natasha had noticed, eyeing Loki warily, but said nothing, apparently in an attempt to see how Zinia would handle herself. She turned around and took a step back, reclaiming her personal space.

"And Loki, what a surprise to see _you, _on Midgard!" she exclaimed before looking back to Natasha faux-conspiratorially. "Do you all have some sort of arrangement?"

Natasha narrowed her eyes.

"We are temporarily opening the possibility of diplomatic negotiations with Loki," she said simply.

"Well," Zinia said, clasping her hands together as the lift came to a stop and they stepped out onto the penthouse. "I think that's wonderful. I hated to see such hostility between two of Yggdrasil's realms. Loki, you will have to tell me what inspired such a sudden change in heart. You struck me as steadfast in your policies of isolationism!"

"_Christ _on a corncob! Is she for real?" Tony called out from behind the bar in the penthouse. "It's like we've got an American politician in here. Can we tone down the shop talk?"

Zinia stopped abruptly and Loki stalled next to her. She looked at him quizzically, not understanding Tony's words in the slightest; if Loki didn't either, he displayed no uncertainty. Zinia unceremoniously accepted a tiny glass that Tony was offering to her. She had no idea what this small drink could be, there appeared to be no more liquid than what a child might expect. She swirled down the slightly bitter amber drink in one small gulp before putting the glass back on his counter.

"Sheesh, take a breath? This one can drink, guys," Tony said, incredulously, behind her. Zinia ignored him and leveled her glare back at Loki, preparing to return to her questions but Natasha interrupted her.

"You must have some idea what you intend to do while you're here," she demanded.

"Well, see the city, of course," she said, "But talk to you all, mostly. Exchange knowledge, potentially secure allyship…" behind her Loki scoffed, "I'll be happy to let you know anything you wish about Vanaheim."

"They want to see what you can _do _Zinia," Loki said darkly, behind her. "Maybe even your new tricks."

Zinia turned to glare at him but Tony was actually standing in support of Loki.

"If we're going to be frank, Zinia, and if you're completely open to peace, what do you have to lose?" he asked.

Zinia narrowed her eyes at Loki who was smirking at her. _See? _he asked her, silently. _This is what they're like. So base. They latch on to the slightest provocation, completely unaware. Unworth your time. _

"Don't you all see that he's manipulating you!" she asked them angrily.

"She's right," someone echoed quickly. It was Steve. The Soldier. Loki had made it clear he had a particular dislike for him, at some point. Some memory of him sighing most exaggeratedly upon Thor's mentioning of the Captain when they had all been on Asgard, was nagging at the back of her mind. Currently Loki was glaring daggers at him; he hadn't displayed quite such a heightened level of distaste for the other Avengers, so far.

"Look, no one is going to make you do anything just because _he _wants us too," Steve assured her.

"Thank you, Captain, though I was never too concerned with anyone _making_ me do anything," she said, reclaiming at least _some _of her dominance.

"Alright, I'll back down _for now_," Tony conceded, "But only because I don't want to play with Reindeer Games."

Loki rolled his eyes at the name and Zinia just looked as confused as ever. There were reindeer on Vanaheim. But though they were huge animals actually capable of flight, they didn't play games to her knowledge. And they didn't remind her of Loki in the slightest.

"Alright, well if we're _not_ going to see what she's made of," the Widow interrupted sounding extremely perturbed, "Perhaps we should sit down and hear exactly what her coronation means for _us_."

Well, she certainly got straight to the point. And she'd clearly been briefed by Thor on her current political situation… at least, she _hoped _it was Thor. With Loki arriving ahead of her and talking about her Dark Magic, who knew what else they'd been told, falsely or otherwise.

"Mr. Stark, might I have another of those tiny drinks?" she asked.

"Let me guess, keep em coming?" he asked.

She bowed her head in a faux-demure fashion, politic and polite as always. When he'd handed her another drink, this glass noticeably fuller than the last, she began.

"In your day to day lives, my coronation means very little for Midgard," she said. Tony raised his eyebrows at that but let her continue. "I confess I do not understand the perpetual strife in this realm. It does not make sense to me that you are all the same people yet perpetually at war with one another."

Banner and Steve Rogers exchanged uncomfortable glances at that but she didn't pause in her explanation. Natasha was holding her gaze with steely eyes in an indication to keep going.

"However, the fact remains that your world and every other in Yggdrasil has always been under its own governance. I am not about to change that tradition. I have no desire to have absolute control over Nine Realms and the concept is actually rather absurd-"

"-Yeah, not _everyone _seems to think so," Dr. Banner interjected, speaking for one of the first times since their introduction. Shadowcat was still sitting near him, as if he'd found a kindred spirit. It was a little peculiar. Shadow tended to be a one-woman cat and was loathe to connect with other beings.

Next to her, Loki shifted at Banner's interruption. She chanced a glance in his direction and he met her eyes, smirking, for a brief second. Zinia decided to ignore the interruption.

"Yet, I will be coronated as Queen of these Nine Realms. And though Vanaheim is the only world in which I will have control over the day to day goings on… it is my duty to serve and protect _all _of my people," she explained. "Should any outside force ever threaten your world, I will be there to help."

"Okay, so that's the part I think we all don't quite _get_, Zinia," Tony said, circling around his bar to stand in front of her. "If your rule is as altruistic as you claim, where exactly was this help when _he_ tried to take over." At this he gestured to Loki, who was still smirking, cool and unflappable as ever.

Zinia cleared her throat uncomfortably. "Midgard was not under Vanaheim's control at that time… but Asgard's," she explained, loathe to shift the blame away from her family as she had always believed her parents _should _have stepped in when it was clear Odin would do nothing to stop the attack of the Chitauri.

"So the balance of power just shifts back and forth between Asgard and Vanaheim at… what? A whim? Based upon whoever feels like it at the time?" the Hawk asked, standing right next to Natasha in apparent solidarity. Their postures had mimicked each others since she'd arrived. They were clearly comrades, possibly even lovers.

"Surely Thor must have told you about the alliance before I arrived-" Zinia started.

"-Princess, I assure you I did my best to explain-" Thor began hastily before Tony interrupted him.

"Yeah he explained… the whole uneasy alliance based upon some marriages and whatever. That's the type of thing we haven't had to deal with in a couple hundred years-" Zinia's thoughts interrupted his speech to acknowledge that a couple hundred years was hardly _anything_ in the grand scheme of time in Yggdrasil, "-But, regardless, it doesn't really matter who was in control. If you're rule is benevolent as you propose… where the hell were you, or Odin, or _whoever_ when Loki attacked?"

Zinia took another gulp of her drink before setting it down and looking to Thor for help.

The Midgardians didn't trust her and they had every right to. She wasn't even Queen yet but she'd already failed them.

* * *

**This is post-Winter Soldier canon but not Agents of SHIELD canon. I confess, I don't even know what's going on in that show. I made one effort to watch it and wasn't super impressed. Hence, SHIELD is simply dissolved as far as Zinia know's for now. **

**Has it become clear yet that fashion is pretty important to me? I think most people send relatively subconscious messages with their wardrobe but, particularly powerful characters like Loki and Zinia strike me as the type of people that would be hyper aware of any messages they might be sending at all times. Plus, they're both total control freaks and, at least in the case of Zinia, fashion is a nice simple way to exercise control when the more important aspects of her life as Queen can't always be so easily handled. **

**So, so, so sorry for the huge delays! I've just finished up applications to graduate school. I have lots of the next chapter already written so… a few notes of encouragement would surely help me bust the next one out a bit quicker! ;) **


	7. Chapter 7

**So most of this chapter takes place in Loki's POV. As such, much of the conversation is sourced from last chapter and, rather than needlessly repeating, I've opted for some well-bulked summary that takes place in Loki's mind. It may be advisable to reread last chapter to remember the specifics. **

* * *

While Zinia had been on Vanaheim dealing with her sisters and deliberating dresses, Loki was making his way via the Bifrost to Midgard. Unannounced.

He had been deposited in the realm in a desert. It was clearly _New _Mexico, or whatever place Thor had been dropped back in the day when he'd met _that woman_. Loki had always wondered what it was that distinguished New Mexico from _actual _Mexico, but he'd never bothered to ask the Midgardians. From there, it had just required a quick teleportation to Stark Tower in New York. _What did that make _actual _York, then? _

But, apparently, teleportation required a bit more finesse on Earth…

"Jesus Crap, Loki, what the hell are you doing here?" Tony Stark asked from a bed, clearly entwined with an Earth woman.

"Well _hello_, Man of Iron and his… companion. I need to speak to Nick Fury and… well, _Thor, _I suppose," he said.

The woman in bed with Tony had, quite shrilly, made Loki turn around. Tony kept placating the woman named Pepper in a fashion that didn't seem quite too foreign from how Loki had pictured bad news being delivered to Zinia. And, true to real life, the bad news delivered to the incensed woman involved himself! Loki considered it good practice.

Naturally, the Man of Iron had himself fully suited within _seconds_. And Loki dutifully allowed himself to be led to some sort of makeshift prison until Thor could arrive and vouch for him. But arrive he did, in a state of bewilderment and shock.

"Brother, what is the reason for your visit?" Thor asked upon entering his holding cell, one that could hardly keep a baby much less the God of Mischief, "Do not tell me that you've recruited yet another alien army. We have enough on our plate with Zinia's impending arrival."

"Yes, her progress, hence the reason for my visit," he replied easily.

Thor cocked an eyebrow.

"Given the fact that the Princess ended her progress of Asgard barely an evening ago… I can only imagine what unfinished business was so important to lead you back to _Midgard_," he said.

"Why I'm only here to offer my assistance!" Loki said with a highly inflated tone of gallantry. "My assistance pertaining to knowledge about said visitor, of course."

Tony, who had been standing behind Thor the whole time, was immediately intrigued. None of the other Avengers were there yet, a fact that did not escape Loki. He knew Tony Stark to be the rogue of the group, so to speak; Stark did not always trust the other Avengers and their allegiance to SHIELD.

"Knowledge of Zinia?" Thor asked. "Insight that I would not have?"

"_Exactly _that type of insight," he replied, ambiguously.

Thor exchanged look with Tony, assessing the situation. They both looked wary and Loki was beginning to wonder if this had been the best idea after all; surely Thor wouldn't give him up to the Midgardians right after Asgard had been affirmed in his control under Zinia's eyes?

"Well, enlighten us then Loki," Thor said after a long moment, seemingly content to give him a chance.

What he did next would have been easier with the aid of his scepter but that had, naturally, been confiscated for the short foreseeable future. He'd always be able to call it back to his side whenever necessary but now, when he was still buying his good graces, was not the time.

Loki focused hard on a memory and, once he had it, thrust it onto the wall like a projection.

It was Zinia, storming through the halls of the palace on Asgard with Shadowcat at her side. She was crying and her ladies were noticeably falling behind to give her some space. You couldn't see it from this view, in his memory, but he was following her as a snake on the wall. Abruptly, in the memory, she noticed. Her beast did too and leapt up at him, as he had moved back, Zinia had transformed — her skin and hair both icy white and her eyes dark. She lifted a hand which, clearly out of her control, sent and barrage of icy spikes his way.

He cut the memory off and turned to look at the Man of Iron and Thor who both, admittedly, looked concerned.

"How are we to know that really happened?" Stark asked skeptically.

Thor shook his head. "He could fake an image for you as a Midgardian, but I would recognize its folly as an Aesir."

"Brotherly-godly connection?" Tony asked, still unconvinced.

"If it helps you to call it that, then yes," Thor said.

"Alright, then what _was _all of that?" he asked.

"Zinia is a daughter of Vanaheim," Loki interjected. "They are a realm of light magic but, each daughter of the royal family possesses some dark magic… Zinia's appears to be manifesting itself for the first time ever."

Thor stared down Loki, hard. "I _do _wonder why that might be, brother," he said.

"She's extremely volatile right now," Loki said, improvising without outright lying, a first he thought. "The slightest provocation could set her dark magic off."

"And so naturally you thought _your _presence might be helpful?" Thor asked, in the most sarcastic biting tone he may have ever used. Was his time on Midgard actually making him smarter?

"_Well_, brother," he said, not afraid to play the familial card while in this godforsaken realm, "As I do possess some of that myself, I did feel something of a qualified candidate to offer my services."

"Ohhh did the two of them have some kind of… _issue?_" Tony Stark asked Thor, gesturing to Loki as if he wasn't in the room in a faux-gossip tone. "But seriously Rock of Ages. Last time you were here you tried to take over. And we were _assured _you'd be properly overseen. What are you doing here?" he demanded.

Loki exchanged one quick glance with Thor to assess who was to answer. Thor's next move would dictate how honest he was willing to be to Midgard.

"Odin has ordered Loki to oversee the protection of Midgard as punishment for what he has done here," Thor answered. It was all Loki could do not to wince. Worst lie ever.

Tony balked. _"Him? _Protect _us? _We don't want him anywhere near us!"

"Yes, which is why I will be here only for this mission," Loki lied. "The Allfather is content to let me serve out my punishment performing other tasks that take me away from Midgard, but he believes my presence while the Princess Zinia is visiting to be… necessary."

They both waited, accepting Tony's critical gaze.

"Odin really thinks she might be that much of a threat?" he asked finally. Apparently, Thor's backing of this story was enough confirmation.

* * *

Tony had debriefed the other Avengers, none of who had been too happy about it, particularly the Hawk. He remembered having the man under his employ during the attack on New York and couldn't help but smirk as the much shorter man spat threateningly-as-possible up at him. Attached as ever to her obvious mate, the Widow had given him a well-landed punch to the face, well… for a Midgardian anyway.

"You better know how _lucky _you are that Nick Fury isn't here today," she hissed at him.

_Off the map_, _more like it_, he thought to himself. If Fury had gotten work of his arrival he'd have been there immediately.

But despite the grumbling and frigid attitudes, he'd been allowed to stay, particularly with less cheek after everyone had seen the video of Zinia losing control. It appeared they felt well equipped to handle magical beings but magical beings out-of-control of their powers were another thing entirely. He was a bit surprised; the memory he'd shared was rather tame to him. Sure, Zinia clearly had the capability to cause some severe damage with her powers but all he'd really shown them was a little ice magic. But, according to Tony, the way Zinia went "all white and scary" was like "something out of The Grudge." He hadn't known exactly what Stark meant, but he'd felt a strange kinship with her then, a fleeting feeling of bonding at the fact that most people were put off by her _other_ form.

He'd vaguely wondered, for just a moment after showing them the memory, if he might have been sort of… _screwing Zinia over. _He knew the reason for her progress across the realms was to bring peace and improve relations between worlds, and having Midgard's finest team of soldiers wary of her doubtless wasn't how she'd like to be received. But so acute was his desire to simply see her and rectify things that he brushed the thought aside as quickly as it had come.

And that was how he came to find himself waiting alongside a most unsightly empty indoor concrete _pit_ for the future Queen of the Nine Realms to arrive, beside his former adversaries but completely at peace for the time. Banner was giving Loki an intimidating once over and the Soldier Out of Time was throwing some serious side-eye. Okay, _relatively _at peace.

Suddenly clouds seemed to gather in the glass ceiling of the room above them as if summoned by Mjolnir, though Thor did not have his hammer at his side at the moment. A torrential rain erupted from them, centralized in the emptied pool, and then she was there. Protected by some aura, the water did not hit her though the ends of her long dress were beginning to collect the dregs of the flood that were draining in the bottom of the pool.

"Someone's gonna have to explain how _that _works to me again," Banner muttered under his breath next to him.

"Princess!" Thor called out jovially.

The bewildered monarch looked out to them and he could see her startle the moment she noticed his presence. He couldn't help but feel pleased; after her own entrance on Asgard… It was always satisfying to have the tables turned. Next to her, her great black lion was in a protective stance, on guard as always.

"Majesty, welcome," he said, with the most respectful tone he could muster. Loki wasn't a gracious loser but he wasn't exactly a gracious winner either. It was going to be difficult not to rub her face into this surprise.

Her eyes never left his own as she approached the stairs out of the pool. She did not look pleased but suspicious and again, just for a split second, he began to second-guess the nature of his plans.

"Whoa, Thor, way to prepare us," Stark said, "You didn't tell us she was gonna be such a babe!"

Loki prickled internally at the comment. Thor looked mortified. He had to remind himself that not only were these Midgardians, they were Americans. They had no conception of how to treat royalty respectfully. Zinia looked affronted and he had a startling revelation. He was glad to have the opportunity to right things between them but, he was also glad to be here on her first trip to Midgard. Thor was an oaf and just assumed everyone to be as easily integrated into the realm as he had been. The Midgardians were also oafs and had no idea how to treat the Queen of Nine Realms. Granted, he hadn't done such a bang up job of that himself so far but that had been on _purpose_. He knew how to behave, he just hadn't. He could help her here and maybe even regain her trust in the process.

"I see no infants here," she responded warily to Stark and Loki could almost see everyone bite their cheeks to keep from laughing at her.

But if Zinia had looked surprised at being called a babe that was nothing compared to her shocked expression when Stark whistled to get her attention during Thor's introductions. She masked it quickly, but the initial surprise was so apparent that Loki had to simultaneously restrain himself from laughing and from strangling Stark. Even the Soldier bristled and shifted with an uncomfortable clearing of his throat; as much as Loki despised Captain America, it was at least somewhat refreshing to see manners still existed in this realm.

There was a bit of a scuffle over Shadowcat. Loki thought Zinia might have killed the Man of Iron herself had he forbidden the cat entrance. Ultimately he was allowed in without further argument.

Throughout the entire introductory exchange, everyone was having silent conversations with everyone. After each handshake offered to Zinia, Thor and Loki would trade looks assessing how things were going, both seemingly willing to serve as ambassadors at this time. Loki wasn't sure when they had agreed to fill this particular role — there had never been _literal _ambassadors between realms — but here they were, working together as brothers simply to make sure things didn't become too _awkward_. And Thor, normally so proud of this realm and his friends here, looked genuinely thankful to have Loki around.

But when he wasn't checking in with Thor, he was noticing Zinia who was constantly throwing him the most bewildered and suspicious glances. Loki considered the bewilderment a positive sign. If she had _just _been suspicious that would have been indicative of some pretty serious damage done to the alliance between their two countries. Perhaps her confusion was a sign that she was willing to believe he was there with altruistic intentions… which he _was_, sort of, considering he standed to benefit a considerable amount if he managed to procure her forgiveness.

And between the glances amongst the gods, the Midgardians were both inspecting him and Zinia. He was almost relieved to see that they seemed equally as suspect of her as they were of him though, logically, he knew it was his own actions that made them so. If he'd left well enough alone, they'd likely all have been content to accept her with open arms based upon Thor's jovial reports of Zinia's temperament.

Zinia had seemed somewhat mollifiedwhen she'd finally been introduced to the Captain, who had been the only one to offer her a bow. It was curt and short, to be sure, but it was definitely noticed amongst all the handshakes. He'd then kissed her hand and said:

"Welcome to Earth and America," skillfully foregoing any titles, as Loki imagined any American would be loath to use, but impressing Zinia all the same.

It was clear; admiration gleaned in her eyes. And Loki couldn't help but grind his teeth when he had kissed her hand; he told himself it was because he couldn't stomach the idea of a common Midgardian touching Vanir royalty.

But just as quickly as their introduction had irked him, Tony was shuffling them all of the room. After instructing Dr. Banner to take the stairs with Shadowcat — neither of whom were quite welcome in a tightly enclosed space — they'd all shared a couple of elevators up to Tony's penthouse. Loki had made sure he was in Zinia's, even though he knew he'd not have a chance to speak with her candidly for some time yet.

Acting on some unspeakable, primal urge, he'd pressed himself more closely into her than was necessary when they'd entered Stark's elevators. Ever since he'd seen her arrive, he'd been striving extremely hard to find a balance between maintaining control on Midgard and not being floored by her presence. If possible, she was almost even more beautiful than he remembered — somewhat disheveled from the trip but regal nonetheless.

He could not have prepared her any better; she very easily could have overwhelmed the Midgardians — _Hel_, she'd overwhelmed _him _— but, diplomatic as always, she'd travelled without an entourage and wearing a simple dress. The only outwardly _un_-Midgardian thing was Shadowcat but Loki had come to understand early on that the cat wasn't up for discussion with Zinia. He always joined her.

Agent Ramanoff was in the elevator with them and she was clearly eyeing the way Loki had pressed himself closely into this _purported _future queen. He apparently wasn't the only one interested to see how Zinia would react. She did so, promptly, whirling on him and taking a large step away before sending a piercing glare.

"And Loki, what a surprise to see _you_, on Midgard!" she sent an exaggerated glance to the Widow, "Do you all have some sort of arrangement?"

The Agent looked repulsed by the idea.

"We are temporarily opening the possibility of diplomatic relations with Loki," she replied, maintaining her cool demeanor.

Bravo. Everyone was surprisingly at their best today when lying. He had always considered himself a good influence.

The elevator halted and the doors opened to the same penthouse Banner had once smashed him around in. He didn't need to think of that now and Zinia didn't give him a chance to.

"Well, I think that's wonderful," her voice bright with false cheer, "I hated to see such hostility between two of Yggdrasil's realms. Loki, you will have to tell me what inspired such a sudden change in heart. You struck me as steadfast in your policies of isolationism!"

He let out a low chuckle. Okay, so she was mad. And he'd forgotten how quick she was. Luckily, Stark was there ahead of him to make an ass of himself.

"_Christ_ on a corncob! Is she for _real?" _Stark asked boorishly while mixing up some drinks, "It's like we've got an American politician in here. Can we tone down the shop talk?"

Zinia actually looked up at him earnestly at that one, her eyes a mess of confusion. He wanted to laugh again but didn't want her to think he was being malicious so he held it in. Stark had crossed the room to hand Zinia a drink that she downed in one go.

It was all for the best that she'd taken it so quickly because they laid right into her, straight away. Stark was demanding to see what she could _do_ and Loki could sense her unease with the Midgardians, which made him oddly elated. But before he knew it, she was turning on _him_.

"Don't you all see that he's manipulating you?" she asked, gesturing to him angrily.

What? How had she turned that on him? Well, he _was _manipulating them but only so that he could stick around Midgard long enough to talk to _her_.

"Look, no one is going to make you do anything because _he_ wants us to," the Captain told her, firmly. Loki detested the look of adoring gratitude she offered him.

"Thank you, Captain, though I was never too concerned with anyone _making_ me do anything," she replied, making Loki smirk behind her.

A strange sense of pride welled within him that Loki felt was misplaced. It occurred to him that in the span of minutes this woman had been present she'd forced him all over his emotional spectrum, something that was typically not very broad.

Then they'd started in on her impending coronation, something bound to come up amongst a group of people who had been content to lead their lives thus far under the very mistaken belief that they were actually governed by some form of real democracy. He'd thought maybe with the switch of topic _away _from details he'd brought to The Avengers attention, her anger towards him might ease up. Instead, she kept sending him sidelong glares every time she shifted or gestured, as if the sour tone of her entrance were entirely his fault.

She dutifully explained that hers was a loose form of governance over Yggdrasil, more the role of protector than anything else. There had been a brief jab in his name about how not all would-be rulers were quite so benevolent but the reminder of his very-near take-over simply made him more proud than anything else. Here he was sitting around with a group of super-human Midgardians, whom had threatened to torture and kill him if he ever set foot on their planet again, just having drinks. He really was a brilliant manipulator.

And then, something entirely unexpected turned the conversations. The Midgardians began to shift the blame of his attack on New York… to _Zinia_. The worst part was she was holding an uncomfortable expression on her face that seemed to suggest she agreed that it may have, in fact, been her fault.

"I know that an explanation of the marital alliance between Vanaheim and Asgard may seem a flimsy excuse, particularly given what you weathered," she paused here to shoot him yet another glare, "I can secure a copy of the alliance if you wish to inspect it further. I know a little of your American government and perhaps it will make more sense to you to know the alliance was established to enact a system where the two realms could check the balance of power."

"Like congress making sure the president doesn't become a monarch?" the Hawk asked, clearly displaying only a very tangential understanding of his own government.

"A bit but… well to draw another example from your own realm, it's more like if Russia and America had decided to work together to check each other's power and prevent another Cold War," she explained.

"Like _that _would ever work!" Banner chimed in.

"Well it _has_ been working for us, for several millennia too," she said. "Really it was working until…"

"Loki," the Widow interjected for her.

"Yes, which, oddly enough, those events occurred right as the balance of power was shifting back towards Vanaheim. A good thing, I assure you, as Odin was loathe to overextend his jurisdiction. Even during catastrophic events, apparently," she said.

"You cool with this? Her taking down your Pops like this?" Stark asked Thor.

Thor sighed heavily and met Loki's eyes for a moment. "What she says is not incorrect. I came head to head with my father on policy several times in the past few decades alone. It was time for Vanaheim to return to power," he answered.

"And, really, what an idiotic thought anyway," Loki said, adding himself back into the mix for the first time.

"How do you mean brother?" Thor asked. Everyone else was hesitant to acknowledge him. Still.

"Trying to blame my attack on New York on Zinia?" he asked like he was talking to a child. "Those actions were mine alone."

"How… out of character of you... to take all the blame," Stark responded while everyone noticeably quirked their brows up in surprise.

"I think you mean all the _credit_," he replied with a calculated smirk, sounding more confident than he felt. Next to him, Zinia was staring him down like she could see right through him. She could tell he was trying to help take any blame away from her, she just had no idea _why_.

"Loki, tone down the attitude or things are going to get _really _ugly for you," the Widow hissed at him lowly.

Banner backed her up. "Yeah, dude, do you really want to make me more pissed than I already am right now?"

Loki put his hands up in faux defense and backed down. No, he certainly did not want a repeat of his last encounter with the Hulk.

"Ignore him. I mean it _was_ his fault but I don't think any of us want to start another war between realms today over a petty squabble. I think we can agree it's for the best that we all maintain civility?" Zinia asked.

No one responded outright, instead settling on some form of affirmative half-hearted grumble. Except for Thor, who immediately responded with a resounding, "Of course, Princess!"

"How do you know so much about our government and history?" the Soldier asked, abruptly, apparently eager to shift away from the atmosphere in the room himself, "I mean, the Cold War?"

"Oh, I come from a family of seers," she replied easily. "Whenever something catastrophic happens in the Nine Realms, we have visions."

"So you really did see… everything in New York, then?" Agent Ramanoff asked blankly.

Zinia signed in resignation. "Yes, I really did."

Thankfully, they didn't push it further, seeming to accept the earlier explanations.

"Well obviously, no one visits a realm specifically to be interrogated," Tony spoke up, sounding somewhat friendlier for the first time. "Why is it that you're here?"

"Thank you Mr. Stark but on that you're wrong," Zinia said. "Though I'd hoped for a less antagonistic undertone, your questions are exactly why I came. Odin's reign did nothing to keep the realms well informed of one another. I have never believed the gods of Asgard or Vanaheim needed to _hide _from Midgardians just to keep them safe. The citizens of Yggdrasil should be well informed. Of course, while I'm here, I'd like to get to know Earth too. The Vanir have not progressed to this realm in a long time and all I know, I know from visions."

"You're not thinking of like a… coming out party, are you?" Banner asked.

"Was that _any_one else's train of thought there?" Tony asked, confused, in response.

Banner ignored him and continued, "I just mean that it's one thing for _us_ to know about your, um, _authority_. We interact with Thor all the time and have a better understanding of all the technicalities. But given what _that _guy did…" Banner said, gesturing to Loki, "And just the general fact that our world is pretty opposed to any kind supreme leadership… I don't think we need to make a public service announcement."

"I predicted as much," Zinia replied. "In either case I had planned to defer to your council. You seem the agency best suited to maintaining relations with other realms so I see no reason for larger involvement."

"Yeah, just don't sneak behind our backs and go make friendly with the Russians and everything should be fine," Tony rang in, in a tone that suggested he was being facetious but held an unmistakable undertone of sincerity.

Just then light tapping clicked from down the corridor, louder as it approached. Rounding the corner was that woman from Stark's bed. She was clothed now, in a taupe skirt suit and nude heels, but Loki noticed her flush very slightly, nonetheless, when she caught his eye as she surveyed the room.

"You must be Zinia!" she said brightly and quickly crossing over the room to shake Zinia hand. "I'm Pepper Potts, President of Stark Industries," she said.

"She's also my girlfriend," Stark called from behind his bar, causing Pepper to flush all over again.

"It's wonderful to meet you Ms. Potts," Zinia replied, standing to meet the woman.

"Oh dear, your dress!" Pepper exclaimed, looking at the garment's still wet ends trailing against the floor. "Did you bring anything else?"

"I had planned to find something suitable upon arriving, I am not overly familiar with Midgardian dress at the moment," she said and Loki could sense she was uncomfortable. Zinia took pride in her ability to use fashion as a subtle diplomatic tool.

"My apologies that no one offered you anything!" Pepper said, sounding scandalized and flashing disapproving looks to everyone around her as if they were supposed to have magically been able to produce clothing. Well, Loki might have been able to help her out but it wasn't as if _clothing _had been first on everyone's mind during the heated discussion. "Come with me," Pepper demanded.

"Thank you for your hospitality Ms. Potts. Everyone I promise not to take up too much time," Zinia demurred following Pepper down the hall.

In the silence that followed they were left in abrupt awkwardness.

"Mr. Stark," Loki spoke abruptly, rattling everyone, "I never _was _able to get a drink up here-"

"_Brother_, outside. Now." Thor demanded.

Just as Loki was about to chastise Thor for being stupid enough to think they might be able to have a true, private conversation just on Stark's balcony, Thor had summoned Mjolnir out of nowhere, calling it out from the sky. Gods knew where he'd left it and what it had broken to return. Whipping it through the air in startling speed, Thor grabbed him and they were flying through the air, above the city and then outside of it, far into a remote area of the country outside the city.

Thor _slammed _them both into the ground, causing Loki to roll hard and fast several feet away in the dirt. When they'd come to a complete stop Loki picked himself off and dusted off dirt from his once flawless black slacks.

"_Now _look what you've done, Thor. Was that really necessary?" he asked only to be leveled by a quick blow to his jaw.

"No _games, _no sarcasm,Loki. Why are you here?" he demanded.

Loki stood up, shaking off the punch before clearing his head and with a deep sigh, imagined himself in clean, unripped clothes. When he opened his eyes he was pleased to see he looked dressed to the nines once again.

Why do you _think_ I'm here? He desperately wanted to ask. Thor once knew him well enough to understand when he felt like he was in trouble and needed help, like now. But he knew that he'd damaged their relationship enough for Thor to distrust his own intuition.

Loki still didn't answer deciding instead to pace and rub his forehead in irritation.

"Loki?" Thor asked with genuine concern laced in his tone.

"I wanted to be a ruler…" he began.

"And so you are-"

"I wanted to be a _good _ruler," he said firmly and Thor bit his tongue. This was a rare show of emotion from his brother. "You know that I did not treat Zinia well in Asgard. I feel I have ruined the oldest and strongest alliance of Yggdrasil… the kind of stupid mess I more readily would have expected from father in his stubborn age-addled moments than myself."

"It is not ruined yet, brother," Thor said, walking over to clap him steadily on the back. "I believe you, Loki. It feels strange to say so, but I do. I support your visit. Just don't make things worse… this hostility you've established for Zinia was not a good start."

"The Midgardians would have been distrustful of her no matter what. This at least gives her a chance to prove herself to them from the beginning," he said, even trying to convince himself.

Thor gave him a look of pure skepticism before grabbing his arm again and beginning to swing the hammer. "We shall see. Come, let us return, we cannot be away too long while Zinia is there."

* * *

Zinia still considered it a wise decision to have traveled without an entourage but, privately, she realized that right about now she needed a confidant. Pepper was dragging her through her closet, holding up outfit choices, and making her _feel_ very much like she had a friend here on Midgard. However, just because Pepper was friendly did not make her trustworthy. Zinia knew nothing about these Midgardians other than the fact that they _hated _Loki and Loki was exactly whom she needed to talk about right now.

"When _he _arrived," Pepper said, ruffling through her clothes, not needing to explain that she was referencing Loki, "We miraculously discovered him in Tony's barracks dressed in Midgardian clothing."

"Yes well, some of us have certainly mastered magic better than others," Zinia responded with just a trace of bitterness, "I used to be able to manage the same trick but I have been feeling a bit… weak as of late."

She did not want to get into how draining her budding Dark Magical abilities were turning out to be with a Midgardian. She sincerely hoped Ms. Potts simply took it as a sign that she was under the weather. No matter what the woman thought, she politely chose not to press Zinia's statement.

"I'm not sure if anything will fit you. We look close to the same size," Pepper fretted.

"_That_ I should be capable of handling. Anything you provide to me, I can alter and return to you as you expect it," Zinia said.

Pepper looked up, perplexed. "You mean, with magic?"

"Exactly that."

Pepper's eyes widened as she nodded, impressed and a bit intimidated before looking back to her clothing.

"Hmmm. Oh, I think this would be lovely!"

Pepper forced a black short skirt into Zinia hands with a white blouse and backed out of the closet excitedly urging her to try it on.

Zinia placed the garments down on a chaise lounge in the closet before slipping out of her own damp dress.

"Did you know he was coming?" Pepper's voice rang out from outside the doors. "Loki, I mean. Even Thor seemed surprised."

"Ms. Potts, any information you have on Loki's arrival surpasses my own, I assure you," she said, mustering up a tone of disinterest to add an air of finality on the topic. She could find out what Loki was up to herself. Anything he might have told the Midgardians was doubtless a lie, anyway.

"Well I don't know anything _yet_," she said. "But Tony will debrief me later I'm sure. How're you getting on with the skirt?"

Zinia spread open the doors and Pepper clapped her hands together with a large smile gracing her features.

"You look wonderful," she said. "The shoes suit you." She gestured to the patent leather red peep toe pumps Zinia had picked out on her own once left inside the depths of the closet.

"Thank you Ms. Potts, I hope tomorrow I will be able to procure some of my own, depending upon how long I am here, of course," Zinia replied.

"Well my closet is always open, I keep it well stocked," she said. "Lots of business meetings and all…"

"Shall we return?" Zinia asked.

"Follow me," Pepper said.

* * *

By the time they returned to the penthouse, Zinia was none the wiser that the brothers had ever left. They were both sitting around Tony's large glass coffee table, drinks in hand. She had to admit she was shocked to see Loki had even been offered anything.

Thor noticed her first.

"Princess! Midgardian clothing compliments you," he said, standing with a curt bow.

Inwardly Zinia rolled her eyes. She'd already had a conversation about formality with her cousin on Asgard. She'd specifically asked him to call her Zinia. She wasn't sure if he was making a show for the Midgardians or if, in their time apart, he'd forgotten their previous air of familiarity.

"Thank you, cousin. But I must insist that you call me Zinia. I beg of all of you, sincerely, to treat me no different than anyone else in this room," she said.

"Might I make the same request?" Loki queried, ironically, from the couch.

"You should be so lucky, _war criminal_," Agent Ramanoff hissed.

As usual, Loki had the sense to back down but Zinia could see him trying very hard to cover a mischievous smile.

Without prompting, Pepper had made sure that there was a long fluted glass safely in Zinia's hands before she could say another word.

"It's champagne," she explained. "A type of wine in our world. Tony owns some of the best in the world."

Zinia took a sip of the bubbly concoction to find it was indeed good quality and not unlike beverages they crafted on Vanaheim.

"This is lovely, Mr. Stark," she said.

"If you're _just_ Zinia, then I'm _just _Tony," he said. "Additionally, calling anyone by anything other than their first name — or nickname in your case Cap — will tick me the hell off so let's all just agree to be gauche, okay?"

Zinia laughed before taking a seat on the couch, "Fine by me, Tony." She was on the same side of the couch as Loki but quite far away from him, a fact that escaped no one's notice. On the other side of the room, Agent Ramanoff and the one they called the Hawk were separating themselves from an obvious huddle. Neither had a drink nor would they except one.

"So you said you're here to answer questions," the Hawk said, maintaining steady and suspicious eye contact with Zinia. "So are you ready to answer them?"

"I welcome your queries!" she said with much more enthusiasm than she really felt.

If the previous conversation's antagonistic undertone was any indicator… Zinia was in for a long night.

* * *

**As usual, apologies for the wait. Also as usual, I have the next bit started already. I just need the encouragement to finish it! I really do thrive off of reviews guys. Even if it's just an emoticon and a note to let me know you're patiently waiting for the next part… it all fuels me to write faster! ;) Please let me know if you're enjoying it so far.**


	8. Chapter 8

The next several hours, Zinia talked her own ear off. But every time she finished, yet another question was hurled her way. She was smart enough to know that Stark was likely using his Midgardian technology to record her but, she had nothing to hide.

They covered every topic ranging from the details of the alliance between Asgard and Vanaheim to future plans for the Dark Elves after the attack on London.

"Malekith is gone now, as Thor has doubtless explained to you," Zinia said, "He is dead, leaving his realm to a new governance and, on my progress, I am scheduled to meet Svartalfheim's new queen, Alflyse. She has made no overt threats towards any of the realms so far. I have high hopes for her new reign."

Then they'd moved to Vanaheim itself; they wanted to know as much as possible about their ruling realm and the powers afforded to its royal inhabitants. She explained Mimir as best she could, but legends of the Spring did not quell their curiosity or anxiety.

"So your Dark Magic," Banner pressed. "Tell us about that."

Zinia had flat out lied; she couldn't help flash her eyes towards Loki when she did, after all — he was the only one outside her family who even _knew _she'd tried working with the Dark Magic from Mimir. "There's not much to tell. I have never used it, not really, not on purpose. We prefer Light Magic on Vanaheim."

"Not on purpose?" the Hawk had then intoned.

"No, and the few accidental manifestations were not notable in any fashion," she replied firmly. It did not escape her, though, in that moment that the Midgardians had exchanged looks with one another and a few had chanced looks toward Loki.

Loki, however, was studiously examining his fingernails. He was seemingly completely disinterested. Perhaps they were just aware that Loki's own magic was Dark and they did not trust it. She hoped it made them happy, then, to hear that she planned not to use it.

"You certainly sound like you have quite the family," Pepper commented politely from across the room. Zinia could see why Tony instilled so much trust in her running the company. The woman was the definition of poise. Her affable conversation was a nice reprieve from the grueling questioning from the rest of them. "I don't think I would have survived growing up with that many sisters."

"We certainly had our share of squabbles and you can imagine that many sisters using magic on each other doesn't always have a benign outcome," Zinia said. "You think my powers are something, just wait until you meet my sister Nanshe. She's a shapeshifter, she can turn into a mermaid."

"That doesn't sound real…" Dr. Banner said to himself from across the room. Zinia was bemused. Much of what she'd told the scientist this evening had baffled him to no end.

She swigged down what was left of her drink. They'd been serving her a multitude of beverages under the guise of seeing what she liked but Zinia was not daft. It had become all too clear to her after the third drink, called an Old Fashioned, that Mr. Stark's true intent was to get her drunk and loosen her tongue. Upon that realization, she'd had to try very hard not to spit out her drink from laughing; Midgardian liquor was at least four times weaker than anything they had on Vanaheim.

"For all that I've told you about Vanaheim, nothing will do it justice until you see it yourselves," she said noncommittally. The others did not respond with such laissez-faire attitudes.

"Um, is that an invitation?" Stark asked from beside the Hawk who, like the Widow, was still studiously maintaining guard and refusing to drink.

"It is indeed Man of Iron, I intend to have guests from each of the Nine Realms at my coronation…" she said, "Barring Niflheim and Helheim of course."

"Helheim? Like Hell?" Bruce Banner asked, "You really expect us to believe Hell exists?"

"I don't _expect _you to do anything Dr. Banner but, indeed, _she _does exist."

"Wait… back-up a second-" Bruce began but Thor interrupted.

"Helheim is a_ real_ realm that exists where the souls of Yggdrasil reside, Dr. Banner," Thor explained. "And the realm is ruled by the Goddess Hel. She can never leave."

"Not even for _important_ coronation ceremonies!" Loki said, sarcastically, from behind all of them, provoking yet another round of glares. "Please, am I really not aloud to say _anything_ while around all of you?"

"I thought we had all pretty much agreed it would be better if you didn't," Tony said, affably.

Thor sighed. "If you could keep your sharp tongue in check and maintain civility, brother, there would be no issue."

Loki rolled his eyes exaggeratedly, as if the request was the most unreasonable thing he'd ever heard.

"And what about this Niflheim?" Agent Barton asked.

"It's an arctic desert world that contains the only known portal to Helheim," Loki explained this time, wanting to prove himself capable of Thor's quest for civility at least to Zinia. "It's almost entirely uninhabited, aside from monsters."

"Monsters," Natasha deadpanned, as if she didn't believe a word Loki as just said.

"Monsters," Zinia replied in affirmation, "The kind even I would not much care to deal with, hence their omission from my guest list."

"I would _gladly _take them on for your Princess-" Thor began but Zinia kindly put up her hand to stop him. This was less about chivalry and more about Thor's insatiable thirst for battle.

"I don't think there shall be any need for that, dear cousin." Thor looked as disappointed as she had ever seen him.

"Monsters and guest lists all in the same conversation?" Tony Stark asked with a laugh.

"You _do_ work for SHIELD," Steve Rogers said from across the room. The Soldier had been silent for some time, content to listen to and observe her. It was a quality she admired immensely, quiet thoughtfulness. Though he'd never admit to the similarity, it was a trait she'd observed many times in Loki.

"Yeah and you do work _with_ an actual monster," Bruce said, gesturing to himself.

"Aw Brucey, you're a majestic beast not a monster!" Tony replied.

"Debatable," Bruce answered bitterly.

"Monster or not, you are still on my guestlist Dr. Banner," Zinia said.

"Annnd we've come full circle!" Stark exclaimed.

"Speaking of which," the Captain said, turning to her, "How exactly are we supposed to _get_ to the ceremony?"

"Yeah, I mean, my technology is the best you'll ever find," Stark said, offering no qualifiers, "But we don't have anything here on Earth yet capable of transporting us lightyears."

"Why you'll take Mimir, of course," she said.

"You mean that scary water vortex that dropped you in Tony's pool?" Banner asked, "That doesn't sound like fun."

"I assure you, it is a great deal of fun," Zinia said to which Loki laughed softly behind her. She ignored him.

"It is not overly different from taking the Bifrost, just colder," Thor explained. "Jane enjoyed the Bifrost very much."

"Speaking of your lady love, cousin, when shall I be able to meet her?" Zinia asked.

"Tomorrow, I should hope," Thor responded. "She moved to New York after the attacks to help Mr. Stark with his research. She would have joined us tonight but we thought first meeting with The Avengers alone might be best."

"I look forward to it," Zinia said with a smile. "If you all don't mind, I would very much like to retire. I hope to see the city tomorrow, as well as continue answering your questions. But after our long talk today a need some rest."

"You've earned it," Stark said, his voice holding the most kindness she'd received from him thus far. "We weren't easy on you."

"I'll show you to your room," Pepper said, standing to lead the way. Zinia had wondered why, if Jane wasn't allowed to her meeting with The Avengers, Pepper was. But it seemed that when Tony Stark wanted things a certain way, others didn't push him on it.

* * *

Pepper had set her up in a very lovely suite in Tony's home. Though she was quite comfortable with the large plush bed, as well as the closet that Pepper had clearly left some clothing in for her, she was loath to undress knowing that her room was undoubtedly under surveillance. Right as she was contemplating bedding down for the night in the rather binding skirt and top Pepper had loaned her earlier, there was a knock on her door.

"One moment," she called before crossing the room to open the door to find none other than Loki. Immediately her suspicion resumed.

"My _King_," she addressed him, in a low breath so as not to be heard. She doubted very sincerely that the Midgardians had been let in on his new title. "To what do I owe the pleasure? And I don't just mean your visit right now."

"Princess, may I come in?" he asked, his face betrayed no sign as to why he was present.

"Into a lady's bedchambers at this hour? Alone? When she has no maidservants around her?" she asked in a tone that inflated more scandal than she truly felt.

Loki glowered. He was sincerely tempted to simply push past her into the room but doubted a move would go over so well. Just as he was about to put his best face of compliance on and outright _plead_, she rolled her eyes and stepped back into the room, leaving the door open.

"Well, alright then," she said, unceremoniously.

He closed the door behind them and took a seat across from her in the small ensuite living room Tony had set up in the room.

"So what are you doing here?" she asked.

"I came to say I'm sorry," he replied.

"To the Midgardians? Seems they took it rather well, all things considered. I'm not sure a simple apology really suffices for what you did-"

"-No, Zinia. I came to apologize to you."

Zinia felt stupefied. She sat back in the chair to assess him. He was gazing at her with genuine, almost hopeful eyes but she had never been one to be tricked by simply _good _acting.

"You expect me to believe that you came all the way to Midgard, a realm where you are all but _banned_, where you are _hated_… to apologize to me?" she asked warily.

"I know it sounds unbelievable-"

"It _is_ unbelievable."

He paused to look down into his lap and recollect his thoughts before starting again. Looking up at her, her critical gaze pierced him to his core. For the first time he was truly struck by how badly he'd messed up. Before she'd always looked hopeful followed by disappointed. It appeared she'd been disappointed one time too many on Asgard because there was no hope in her gaze now, only calculated annoyance and suspicion.

"You're right, it is unbelievable," he said. "But it is the truth nonetheless."

Zinia sighed again and rested her forehead in her hand. "Loki, it is late. I know we did not have any time to speak with each other privately tonight but the fact remains that we are both staying in Tony Stark's house. We have no privacy and I am _tired_, regardless."

She stood, adding a note of finality to her words.

"Perhaps tomorrow," he said unable to disguise his own disappointment but standing as well. "When we are out of this wretched building."

"Wretched?" she asked, leading him over to her door. "I think it's quite nice."

As she opened the door, Loki offered her a small bow. And, without quite thinking his actions through, took her hand to kiss it in an effort to appear polite and gallant.

The shock was instantaneous. Upon his touch a wave of power floored them both, rippling out from their cores, almost sending them flying apart. But the moment their hands almost disconnected from the power of the shock wave, the same power began to suck them back into one another. The power binded their searing touch making it impossible to separate.

And in an instant, it was over. The moment the flood of power washed away, Zinia wrenched her hand back as if she'd been burned. It occurred to them both that, though they had felt as if a sonic blast had pushed them apart across the room and then pulled them back together, they hadn't actually moved an inch. The sensations had occurred solely within their personages. Hopefully Stark's surveillance wouldn't detect anything other than a brief awkward moment.

"What was that?" Zinia asked him darkly.

"Princess, I'm afraid I don't know," he responded, holding her gaze.

For once Zinia believed him. And that scared her enough to slam the door right in his face.

* * *

Zinia was used to arising at dawn but when she did the following morning, she was too scared of even the possibility of being stuck alone in the Penthouse with Loki to go wandering about the house. Instead she decided to take her chances braving the streets of New York herself; she wouldn't go very far, after all, it couldn't be very dangerous.

In any case, she had to get ready and spent a great deal of time luxuriating in the large shower of her suite's bathroom and fawning over the make-up left for her on the table, probably from Pepper. The Midgardians may not have had the strength of the Vanir or Aesir, but they held their own with technology. Zinia thought she could have remained in Stark's continuously warm shower all day. And though she'd never heard of a Midgardian man named Mac, his make-up products were so vibrant it took a lot of willpower to fix herself up normally instead of as a painted whore.

She picked another slim fitting skirt that stopped at the knees, this one houndstooth patterned, like the one Pepper had worn the previous evening. Her only gauge for how to dress at this point was Pepper and Zinia had to admit that Stark's companion had looked impeccable. Agent Romanoff had spent the entire evening attired in the same black jumpsuit her partner Barton had worn. Clearly it was some sort of SHIELD uniform or, at the very least, attire suited for battle. Se was perturbed they thought they might need it around her but didn't see any real harm in their being cautious. They didn't know her or anything about her really; they were just being smart.

In any case with only Pepper's guidance to go on, Zinia pulled on the skirt with a smart black top and black suede high heels. If Pepper's selections were telling, Midgardian women apparently favored neutral tones. The red shoes she had borrowed the previous evening were the most colorful selection gracing her closet. Oh well, at least she'd blend in.

Or, she'd _thought _she'd blend in, until she was clicking her way through the entry lobby of Stark's building and saw two very frazzled, but very beautiful, women clamoring through the doors with a bulk of equipment in their arms. They were both dressed completely differently than Pepper in brightly colored t-shirts layered with more brightly colored scarves all over top the same type of blue work pants she'd seen Tony and Bruce wearing yesterday.

There was a front desk in Tony's lobby and, even this early in the morning, it was staffed. But the elderly woman watching the commotion at the doors seemed completely nonplussed and made no motion to do or say anything.

Zinia walked up to the two women. "Excuse me, do you all need any help?" she asked pleasantly.

The younger of the two women looked up at her, giving her and her outfit a once over.

"In _those _heels?" she asked Zinia.

"Well I didn't mean _physical _help," Zinia said.

The young woman looked perplexed as her companion attempted to wedge a huge metal contraption through the door. "Uhhh then what? Was that just a pleasantry?"

"Darcy!" the other woman shouted from behind. "Sorry to break up the small talk but this is _really _heavy-"

The woman cut herself off when the very contraption she was trying to lift suddenly levitated through the air; the doors held themselves open as the machine flew in through the door, and landed softly in front of Zinia's feet.

"Whoa…" the first woman, apparently called Darcy, said.

The second followed through, also looking surprised but not as much.

"Oh, _you _must be Zinia," the second woman said, holding out her hand to shake.

"Zinia? The princess-god-lady?" Darcy asked, "Are you sure you wanted to put on that show in front of Mildred?"

"Mildred?" Zinia asked, completely at a loss.

"Yeah, Mildred," Darcy said, pointing to the old woman at the desk behind them and waving enthusiastically, "Hi Mildred!"

The old woman merely scowled.

"Trust me Darcy, she works for Tony Stark. She's seen stranger things than levitating objects. I'm Jane Foster, Thor's… um girlfriend."

"Jane Foster! Oh I'm so pleased to meet you in person!" Zinia said brightly.

Jane flushed a deep red. "In person… right, yeah about last time-"

"-That was my fault entirely. My deepest regrets for intruding on such a personal moment-"

"-Oh yeah! The shower! Jane told me about that, ha!" the young woman laughed heartily.

"I gather your name is Darcy?" Zinia asked, cordially holding her hand out and shaking the young woman's.

"Darcy Lewis, nice to meet ya!" she said. "I'm Jane's assistant."

"We weren't expecting to meet you so early," Jane said. "I just needed to get this equipment back to Tony-"

"Tony is already awake?" Zinia asked.

"You haven't seen him?" Jane asked with a smile, "The man never sleeps. Come on, if you're willing to pull your floating trick again I'll take you up to his lab."

"Gladly!" she said forgetting her sojourn to the city in favor of acquainting herself with Jane and, with very minimal effort, enchanting the equipment to trail in the air behind them.

With Jane leading the way they all walked past Mildred's desk to the elevators. Poor Mildred had fallen fast asleep.

* * *

"I see you've enlisted the help!" Tony called out as they entered his lab, the equipment still dutifully flying behind them.

"You're gonna have to be more specific, who's the help in this scenario?" Darcy asked.

"Zinia, of course, ha!" he responded, barely looking up from a piece of metal he was soldering. "She's carrying all that crap, isn't she?"

"Nothing to break a nail over, I assure you, Mr. Stark," she said, allowing her powers to rest everything lightly on the floor.

In an instant he was up from his chair and inspecting everything.

"What the-? Is this _your_ doing?" he asked Zinia, pointing to a very obvious dent on one of the sides of his machine.

"Hardly," she responded, narrowing her eyes. She wasn't one to help people only to be harangued about it afterwards.

"Yeah… that was probably us," Darcy answered.

"Before we got here, we _did _have to carry this ten blocks ourselves, and _then _on the subway," Jane explained. "It's very heavy."

"And cumbersome!" Darcy added.

"You could have just _called _me to pick it up!" Tony complained, "Better yet, you all could just move in here. Research all the time!"

"Tempting," Jane deadpanned. "But you're right, we should have called. We were worried it was too early."

"Speaking of which," Tony said, abruptly changing topics and rounding on Zinia. "What are _you_ doing up at this hour? I thought _royalty _slept late!"

Zinia quirked an eyebrow. "And how many members of _royalty _have you met Mr. Stark?" she asked. "Because where I come from, royals greet the day. They have a lot to do."

Jane snorted. "Tell that to Thor!"

"Where is my cousin?" she asked. "Did he return home to you last night or…"

She let the question dangle. Did he stay here? To keep an eye on Loki?

"He shacked up here for the night," Tony answered, and Zinia couldn't help but notice a look of bitterness that crossed Jane's features very briefly. "Given the _flux_ of otherworldly visitors yesterday, we all thought it might be best."

"I agree! Not to mention, he _is _my family. It will be nice for me to stay under one roof with a relative," she said.

"Well you're always welcome at our house!" Jane offered immediately, "Not that it's _anything _like Tony's place… I mean-"

"I'm sure it's a lovely abode, Jane," Zinia said. "I am honored to receive your invitation and hope to accept one day. Given that this is my first trip to your realm, though, it might be best for me to stay close to The Avengers headquarters, so to speak."

"Don't let the rest of them hear you call it that," Tony said. "Anyway, it's past eight. I've been up all night and I'm starving. How about we rouse everyone and get some breakfast?"

* * *

Zinia did not expect Loki to receive an invitation to their morning meal from Tony but she needn't have worried since he walked in aside his brother. Though she was still off-put by the prospect of hearing whatever excuse for an 'apology' he'd cooked up, she was curious about the sensation she'd experienced the night before. This was the second time something strange like that had occurred with him; the last was when their magic had interacted when they'd both conjured snakes at the feast on Asgard. She didn't doubt his honesty that he too had no idea what transpired which meant that the only way to figure it out was to experience it again and study it.

As Thor and Loki took their place at the table, Tony deposited a huge stack of pancakes in front of everyone.

"Dig in," he said. "Pepper's making eggs, too."

"Where is everyone?" Zinia asked, seeing only the brothers, Tony and Pepper, and Jane and Darcy at the table.

"They didn't stay the night," he said. "Back to their respective homes. Took some arm twisting on Romanoff's part."

"Really? I had hoped to gain her trust by being so open during last nights conversation," Zinia said with a frown before sipping at a glass of orange juice.

"You mean interrogation?" Pepper called from the kitchen.

Zinia laughed but didn't respond to the comment. She was glad at least one Midgardian was on her side.

"I can't speak for Natasha but um I doubt she was worried about _you_," Jane told Zinia, chancing a glance in Loki's direction.

He was staring straight back at her, unblinking with a manic sort-of smile on his face. He was clearly trying to unnerve her and it worked because Jane promptly redirected her gaze to her plate. Zinia rolled her eyes.

"We'll meet-up with everyone after breakfast. Everyone has vastly different ideas on what's a must-see in New York," Pepper said.

"But for God's sake, we're _not_ letting Rogers drag us to Brooklyn," Tony said.

"What's Brooklyn?" Zinia asked.

"It's a neighborhood in New York," Darcy explained. "Cap lives out there, so do Clint and 'Tash."

"'Tash?" Jane asked with a laugh.

"She hates it," Darcy said with a sly grin. Even Loki looked bemused at the prospect of annoying the Black Widow with a nickname.

Pepper made her way over to the table with a mountain of scrambled eggs. As soon it was on the table, Thor was shoveling himself a hearty portion and digging in like he hadn't eaten in weeks.

"Really, Thor, don't be gauche," Loki said with a distasteful sneer before taking a dignified sip of juice.

"Yeah, how come you don't go after _my _food like that?" Jane asked.

Thor took a breath from his feasting to look up at Jane with wide, apologetic eyes.

"Your cooking is _delightful_, Jane, I'm just exceptionally hungry this morning!" he insisted.

"Uh-huh, sure. He said before absconding to Paris with Pepper Potts," she said with a cheeky grin. Pepper let out a hoot of laughter as she took a seat at the table beside Tony, setting down a final plate of toast for everyone.

"I'd like to see him try," was all Tony said, begrudgingly accepting a placating pat on the back from Pepper.

* * *

Zinia had seen a bit of New York's skyline from Tony's window but it was nothing like actually being _in_ the city. Sure, the buildings were massive but they had massive architecture on Vanaheim and Asgard alike, bigger actually. It was the mass of people that really struck her. Vanaheim was a populous realm to be sure but she had never in her life seen so many people in a single place, not even in her home's most bustling bazaar. Before leaving the house she'd been begrudgingly persuaded not to bring Shadow with them — apparently lions weren't well-received on the streets of New York — but now she understood why. Shadow himself likely would have been overwhelmed by the crowds and the cars.

Midgardians had bazaars but they were primarily indoors. Each side of the street was flanked with shops selling everything you could possibly imagine. Time and again she was struck by something she would see in a shop window and would be tempted to go in but, she reminded herself that she was not here to go shopping.

Loki had pulled back his hair, a look she couldn't help but notice he wore rather handsomely. He'd also donned a pair of eyewear that Thor called 'sunglasses' as to remain as unnoticeable as possible. Apparently Loki's visage wasn't one any of them were hoping to have recognized on the street.

They did attract attention though, how could they not? They met with the rest of the team, sans Dr. Banner who would be busy researching until later that evening, outside of a place called Central Park which Tony was vehement that they _not _visit.

"No one comes to New York to see nature!" he insisted.

So he'd led them all instead to a road called Wall Street, purportedly his _favorite _place in the world. Despite the fact that said place was, apparently, not the best spot to stay undercover.

"This is the financial district of the city and, thus, essentially the world," he explained while they all stood in front of a building he said contained something called the 'Stock Exchange.' Next to her, Natasha Romanoff was loudly popping some gum and checking her watch with an exaggerated sigh every few minutes.

"You see all these suits?" Tony asked her, "These are the men that buy and sell all the stock in Stark Industries and make _me _a very wealthy man. Well, they do and I do, of course. My genius is what really runs the whole thing."

"Tony there's nothing to _see _here," Natasha called out from behind all of them.

"Of course there is! We're going into the Stock Exchange!" Tony called back before pointing to Zinia, "Look at her! In Pepper's clothes she fits right in."

"So does _Loki_ for that matter," Captain Rogers murmured beside her, "Doesn't mean he needs to be let in to the hub of the world economy."

Loki's eyes flashed with mischief on that note. She'd have to keep an eye on him inside but, if he were truly hear to make amends as he claimed, she wouldn't need to.

Entering the building she was met by a deafening roar, a carnival of lights, and a confetti of paper being thrown about by hundreds upon hundreds of men and women — all shouting, most of them cursing.

"You want to _sell _your entire portfolio? Are you _insane_, you asshole?!" a man shouted into a phone nearby. "No I _do not _think this is the best time to cash in, in the market, ya' whackjob!"

"This is the fiscal capital of Midgard?" Zinia asked Clint Barton, who was now next to her.

"Insane, isn't it?" he asked.

Then, all of a sudden, as if the commotion couldn't have grown any greater, the crowd whirled on all of them as whispers of Tony's name began making their way through the crowd. The whispers grew into chatter and the chatter grew into fervor until, finally, dozens of men and women were clamoring to reach them.

"Mr. Stark! Mr. Stark!"

"Are you planning to sell any of your shares of the company today, Mr. Stark?"

"Mr. Stark, might I speak with you about my brokerage firm? We are one of the largest firms on Wall Street, perfectly equipped to handle a client of your magnitude!"

They were not at all shy about encroaching on the group's personal space and, though the other Avengers were with them, the suits seemed intent on solely engaging Tony. Zinia, meanwhile, couldn't help but feel a bit claustrophobic.

"See Tony? I told you we shouldn't have come here! This is madness!" Natasha screamed at Tony.

"What are you talking about? It's always like this!" he shouted back.

Not expecting to be heard above the chaos but feeling the start of a panic attack coming along, Zinia said, mostly to herself: "I think I need to get out of here."

And the moment she'd said it, cool hands snaked themselves around her torso and, for a split second, everything went black. When her sight returned she found herself outside in front of the building, Loki's arms still around her. Still a bit unsteady from the teleportation, she wobbled on her spike heels. He removed his hands from her waist to grasp her firmly by the shoulders and keep her upright.

"Are you alright, Zinia?" he asked, staring down at her hard.

"Yes, I'm fine… I've never been in a crowd like that, certainly never an _angry _crowd like that," she explained.

"I'm not sure they were really angry so much as very vehement about their work," he said. "None the less, Stark was an idiot to take you there."

"It was a good idea in theory," she defended. "The economic capital of this realm, after all. But.. thank you, Loki. You really helped me back there."

"Of course," he said. "You're welcome."

He still hadn't let go of her but the moment Jane, Darcy, and Pepper also escaped through the doors, followed closely by Thor and Natasha, he released her as if nothing had happened.

"Really brother, I am glad you were able to help Zinia but I am not sure you should have teleported in front of all those Midgardians," Thor scolded.

"Please, they had a single track mind," Jane said. "It was all about Tony. But _thanks _for taking us with you!"

Loki rolled his eyes and didn't respond, simply moving several feet away from the group to go back to sulking as usual, apparently.

"Clint and Steve are trying to wrench Tony out of there," Natasha explained.

It was only a few more minutes before the rest of their group arrived, somewhat disheveled but no worse for wear.

"Okay guys! Where to next?" Tony asked jovially.

"_Your _house," Steve growled at him. "The rest of us had the sense to dress low key but _you_. Well, after that display, your showboating is over. And you're not wearing one of your custom-made attention-drawing suits anymore, I can tell you that much."

"But… but… Pepper!"

"No Tony, he's right," she said. "Let's head back and then we'll take the ferry down to the Statue of Liberty. I think some nice and quiet history is what we could all use next."

* * *

Nice and quiet was at least right. Tony, being Tony, had thought agreeing to more 'undercover' attire was enough acquiescence for one day and insisted they charter a private ferry to the statue. That way Zinia would get the experience of a New York ferry ride, but without anymore ridiculous crowds. The island where this supposed statue was had also been rented for the day.

Zinia loved the water, she supposed it was a side effect of being born in Mimir's waters. And while New York's coast certainly wasn't the most pleasant smelling, it was nice to feel the breeze as the ferry carried them and see the city from the water.

"That's where the Twin Towers once stood," Jane Foster said pointing to a spot in the skyline. "They housed the World Trade Center which was-"

"I know," she said, interrupting only because the memory of the vision still caused her great pain. "My sisters and I could see, from Vanaheim when it happened."

"Thor told me your family was made up of seers," Jane said softly. "That must be hard."

"It is hardest because of your realm, unfortunately," she explained. "Constantly at war with one another here, tragedy strikes often."

She and Jane stood together for a moment at the railing together before Zinia offered her a smile and turned back to explore the rest of the boat and see what the others were up to.

In the lower level seating area of the ferry Tony was at a food counter purchasing some form of corn crisps with spooned yellow goo atop them. Pepper and Natasha were looking on at his choice in disgust and Steve and Clint were sitting with their feet propped up, looking out on the water. Darcy had joined Jane at the railing so Zinia made her way toward the upper level where Thor and Loki were both sitting together speaking in hushed tones.

The second they noticed her, the whispers stopped and Thor arose.

"Zinia," he said with a kind nod before leaving her alone on the upper deck with Loki who was still seated and watching her with calm, contemplative eyes.

She sauntered over, displaying more confidence than she felt, and took Thor's discarded seat.

"You certainly are taking all of this in stride," she commented, "For someone who hates Midgard so intensely."

"At least I've been here before," Loki responded, "I know we don't know one another too well but I would have expected your first visit to have been a bit more overwhelming."

She winced. "I did rather embarrass myself at the Stock Exchange."

"You did nothing of the sort," he said, kindly. "You must not have noticed how overwhelmed all the others were. They were racing to escape themselves."

She couldn't help but be surprised at how kind he was being. Almost even stranger was how serious he was taking the conversation; the God of Mischief had more than lived up to his name in the past, turning everything into a joke at her expense.

"Yes, I would have liked to stay longer though if I could have managed it," she said. "An entire realm's economy practically housed in a single building? I doubt I'll ever learn exactly what they're buying or selling there now!"

"Something tells me that Tony Stark would be more than thrilled to talk that subject to death over dinner this evening."

She had to laugh. "I suppose you're right about that," she looked away from him and ahead out onto the water, and then she saw it. She'd never seen that Statue of Liberty before but apparently it was the type of monument one knew as soon as one saw it. "Oh, Loki I think that's-"

"That's it! Do you see it!" Darcy Lewis called, clomping up the stairs at an excited rate and pointing out over the water.

Zinia pushed back a strand of her windblown hair was a bemused smile, all too aware that Loki's attention was still wholly focused onto herself. "How could I miss it?"

The rest of the team began following as well, to get the best view from the upper deck.

"Well are you ready to climb almost 400 stairs?" Pepper asked her, already sounding tired at the prospect.

"I knew Bruce got out easy today!" Tony whined.

"Don't be such a baby, it's not that bad," Steve said.

"We could always teleport to the top," Loki suggested idly from beside her.

"Something tells me that would be missing the point," she said with a smile as their ferry began to pull up and dock.

* * *

**Every time Zinia calls Thor "dear cousin" there is a part of me that wants to go all Shakespeare and write "dear cos." I'm not gonna do it; that would be silly. **

**Shoutout to mayfire21 for dropping me a lovely note! Encouragement was certainly a helpful motivating factor to get this chapter out quickly. Now if only I could apply that motivation to some of my other stories! .**


End file.
